


Reckless Desire

by TanyaTinks



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Bill x Dipper, BillDip, Cipher Pines, Dream Demon, Dreams, Fluff, Human Bill Cipher, M/M, Nightmares, Reverse Bill, mindscape
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-22
Updated: 2015-08-31
Packaged: 2018-04-05 16:15:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 23,375
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4186479
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TanyaTinks/pseuds/TanyaTinks
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>18 years old, and back in Gravity Falls for the summer, Dipper Pines crosses paths again with Bill Cipher who makes his way back into Dipper's life at a great cost - via a bet with a demonic twist. </p><p>Stubborn and secretive, Dipper attempts to hide away the confusing feelings that are rising within him. But Bill knows all too well what's going on. </p><p>Knowing that Bill cannot feel real human emotion, Dipper decides if he is ever going to find out what he feels is true, he needs to find a way to give Bill humanity.</p><p>(NSFW in later chapters)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Remember This Face

Part 1: Remember This Face

 

Hearing rain patter on a thin tin roof was a melodious sound to wake up to. It was calming. Dipper welcomed it as he roused from what felt like a year long sleep filled with plenty of good dreams. His whole body felt stiff and weighed down like it was made of lead, but with great effort he used his elbows to push himself up and wiped away the grogginess from his eyes. The barn was freezing, his short sleeve shirt doing little to help preserve heat, and the wind whistled in through the rotting cracks in the wood panelled walls. It was dazzlingly bright despite the pummeling rain and at the very least the sun made it seem like it was a warm, midsummer afternoon. 

Misty, white clouds formed with each irregular breath that Dipper took, and he realised he'd clocked out in a nest of hay he didn't remember making. When he was sure he was properly awake, he steadily got to his feet, brushing himself off and scanned the area, but the barn was empty except for himself and the messily scattered piles of hay. It was a wonder the cold hadn't turned his fingers blue. He brought his hands up to his mouth and breathed hot air over them. 

Dipper wondered where everyone was and sensing like something was out of place - a loud bang went off behind Dipper and he flinched violently, whipping around quickly with his hands raised protectively. When nothing happened after several seconds he lowered his hands to find that the barn door had been left open. It was just the wind. He let his hands fall to his sides and heaved a sigh that said, I'm relieved it was nothing, but at the same time I feel incredibly stupid. Dipper took a moment to check around for anything that might belong to him, patting down his pockets too, then contently headed towards the door. He reached for the handle when a howling wind tore past, dragging the towering door away from Dipper's grasp and then swinging right back towards him. It slammed in his face, the force ruffling his hair lightly and a metallic clang sounded as the bolt locked from the outside. That was weird. 

Dipper opened his mouth to shout for someone to open the door when everything went pitch black like a switch was flipped. The words caught in his throat as fear immoblised him. He wasn't afraid because he had phobia of the dark - it was the uneasy feeling that someone was watching him from all sides. Someone, or something deadly. The air was buzzing with a powerful energy. For some reason Dipper started to think about the sense of safety he used to feel when tightly tucked under his duvet, or when Mabel snuggled up next to him - like no monster could get close. He desired something like that now. Or at least a flashlight. 

There were no lights in the barn and Dipper was certain it was early afternoon when he woke. Where did the sun go? Behind some storm clouds? A solar eclipse?

Like a song stopped in the middle of playing the blundering winds and rain abruptly cut off leaving not a single sound. Not even his own heartbeat and the blood in his ears. Absolutely nothing. Dipper swallowed hard. 

"Those weren't completely hopeless guesses, I'll give you that, but both were very, very wrong I'm afraid," a smooth, familiar voice chimed, breaking the unnatural silence. It echoed around him distortedly, like he was hearing it from underwater. Someone was in here with him and he was pretty confident about who it might be. He really would have preferred someone else - even the Summerween Trickster seemed more appealing. 

Dipper remained facing the door and asked, "I thought you couldn't leave the mindscape unless you were summoned by a ritual?"  
They let out a slight 'hmph' chuckle and Dipper could tell he was smirking without having to look at him. "Kid...where do you think we are?"

\---------------------

"Dipper!"  
In a flurry of panic, Dipper woke up a second time with wild, wide eyes and legs thrashing under his blanket. In an attempt to stand his legs became entangled in the sheets and he ungracefully slipped off the bed and hit the floor shoulder first. He threw out his arms and scrambled up into a sitting position with his knees pulled tightly up to his chin. Cold beads of sweat dotted his forehead and his breaths came erratically. He was visibly shaking and all the colour had drained from his face. 

"Dipper," Mabel murmured softly, placing her hand on his shoulder. "Whatever happened, it's gone now, it was just a nightmare." Dipper ran a trembling hand through his hair, taking in his surroundings as Mabel gently stroked his back. He was back in the attic bedroom above the Mystery Shack gift store with his sister - the barn was gone.  
"I don't think it was a one-off bad dream."  
Mabel tilted her head. "What makes you say that? Has it happened before?"  
He desperately wanted to tell her so he didn't have to struggle with it alone, but even an eighteen year old was entitled to his own secrets, even from their twin. He felt she was safer not knowing. Ignorance is bliss.  
"Don't worry about it, I'm sure it's like you said, it's gone now." Dipper smiled at her and he hoped she wouldn't notice that it didn't show in his eyes. 

\---------------------

Mabel and Stan worried about him all during breakfast. Dipper wolfed down a couple spoons of cereal, half a pink grapefruit and drained his glass of chocolate milk in less than fifteen minutes before grabbing his backpack and bolting out the back door without a word.

He had to find the barn in his dream. It was the only lead he had in finding out if HE was really back. Dipper had no memory of ever being in that barn and the longer he walked around, the more he doubted Gravity Falls had a barn like it. At least in town. It had been years since he explored the woods. This was his first summer back after Stanley returned and everyone agreed going home for a few years to stay their parents was the sensible thing to do until both Stans sorted the unique family drama. Or rather Dipper was bursting with questions but sent packing anyway. 

Standing at an entrance to the forest, Dipper grabbed both bag straps and took a deep breath. Stan had locked away the Journals so he was at a great disadvantage. He was going in incredibly unprepared. He fished out his phone and as expected there was no signal. He put it back in his pocket just as a flock of crows squawked shrilly, emerging from the trees like a black miasma cloud. They torpedoed past Dipper as a blur and scratched his arms with talons like tiny needles as he held them up as his shield. "Dammit," he hissed through gritted teeth. He turned over his arms to check the damage, only...his arms were perfectly fine. Not a single graze. Did he just imagine that happening? How could he have when the pain felt so real?

"I have to stay focused," he told himself, shaking his head and patting his cheeks. No more distractions. No more hallucinations. A coffee would be nice though, he thought. 

Dipper exhaled and took his first step. Under his foot the ground felt unusually soft and it sunk the more weight he put onto it. "What the hell?" Lifting his other foot, he heard a snap like an elastic band breaking and without any warning the ground collapsed from under him, throwing Dipper down into a dimly light tunnel that had smooth mossy walls and sloped dramatically like a freefall slide. It smelt like the forest after a rainfall, it was damp and warm. Dipper tried to grab onto some roots to pull himself back to the surface but they came right out of the crumbling soil, along with a few unwanted centipedes and worms. If he hadn't left in such a hurry he could have packed some proper climbing gear or taken Mabel's grappling hook. If it decided to work. Instead, without any useful tools on hand, he tried to push himself back as far as he could go to prevent himself from hurdling down the tunnel slide, but from the lack of friction under his sneakers, he slipped backwards, banging his spine hard off the ground and flew down the tunnel before he even had a second to correct himself. 

Dipper kept his eyes shut tight the entire 'ride', yelling the whole way down. There were several sharp twists and dips that nearly had Dipper slide around a full loop had he not skillfully prevented it by flailing his limbs about randomly, followed by a painful landing each time. And like a theme park ride he felt that if it didn't get off soon he was going to see his breakfast again. 

As his eyes were closed Dipper failed to prepare himself for the end of the tunnel approaching that fired him out the end like a bullet. With the feeling of the smooth slide suddenly gone from under him, Dipper's eyes snapped open automatically and the wind whipped violently through his hair and clothes. He held tightly onto his hat so it wouldn't blow away. He had entered some sort of wide underground cavern, the ceiling stretched high above him and it was covered in jagged stalactites. Dipper assumed nothing seemed to be living around here. It was dead silent and very chilly.

When Dipper looked below him, the sight was enough to make his jaw drop. There was a giant pool of water so deep and murky he couldn't see the bottom. There was no ground or edges around to make his way to safety once he dropped in - just water. Probably very icy water. He knew he had no equipment for swimming or breathing underwater in his bag- he intended to walk around the forest, not take a suicidal plunge. Regardless of this, he cursed under his breath - there was nothing else to do. His backpack was beginning to feel a lot like deadweight. 

When he got close enough to stare at his own reflection on the surface, Dipper sucked in as big a breath as his lungs could muster and braced himself. He collided with the water like it was a solid object, brutally stinging the left side of his body he landed on and air bubbles escaped his nose and ears as he sunk. Dipper was right, the water was severely freezing. The shock forced him to gasp involuntarily and the water rushed into his mouth. It tasted awful, like salt and copper. He closed his mouth and had no option but to hold the water there, swallowing it would make him need to breathe. Dipper began kicking his legs and pushing upwards with his arms, his bag literally weighing him down. No matter how much adrenaline hummed through his veins, the effort was futile. He wasn't getting anywhere, even though the surface was so close. His vision began to blur, his mind grew hazy. Thoughts were hard to form and his legs slowed down. Then everything faded to black.

\----------------

"Wa...up. Hey, k...get...p. Are y... ali...?"  
"Whoa!" Dipper jolted and sat up straight, his chest heaving with rapid fire breaths. His mouth still tasted disgustingly coppery. A hand gently took his shoulder and for a reassuring moment he thought it was Mabel comforting him after another nightmare but the hand was small and black. "Argh!" Dipper slapped it away and got to his feet, backing away a good few paces. "You," he said venomously. "What are you doing here?"  
Bill's eye crinkled underneath, as if he were grinning. "I'm right where I should be."  
Dipper slipped the bag off his shoulders and set it by his feet in case he needed to get something out of it quickly. "Honestly, I have no idea what this place is but it's under the forest I know that at least. And so you shouldn't be here."  
"Kid,"he sighed. "I thought a good few years frolicking in this modern world of yours would've expanded your intelligence a fraction. Or maybe you had to replace common sense with the memory of how to breathe, I understand that your brains have limited space like a dodgy flash drive."  
Dipper rolled his eyes. "I'm surprised you even know what a flash drive is."  
Bill's eye narrowed. "That is besides the point." The demon floated towards Dipper, keeping a three feet distance from his face. "You can act high and mighty as much as you want, but this is my domain."  
"What are you saying?"  
"I'm saying...you were never attacked by those crows, you never went down a secret a tunnel, you never fell hundreds of feet or ended up in a cave filled with water. There is no tunnel or cave or crows. Your real body is lying unconscious outside the forest."  
Dipper stiffened. This whole experience felt as real to him as though he were awake. But he wasn't. He felt a chill run down his spine. "There ain't even a barn, Kid. These were all just frivolous things I conjured up to amuse myself.  
"How did I get knocked out exactly?" Dipper asked suspiciously.  
"Oh!" Bill started laughing. "Oh this is good. And don't give me the evil eye because I am not responsible, it was all you. See, you were about to walk into the forest that much is true, and you were all happy-go-lucky, ready to locate this imaginary barn when bam!" Dipper flinched as Bill flicked his hands opens in his face as he shouted. "You slipped and hit your head on a rock." Bill resumed his laughter.  
Dipper groaned and placed his hand over his face in shame. That was kind of embarrassing, not to mention cliche. "Will you just let me wake up?"  
"Sure, although first..." Bill moved closer so their faces were almost touching. His eyes turned to a deep blood red. "I want you to remember this face."

\--------------

Dipper slowly opened his eyes to a fresh rain falling on his face. He was lying in the mud just outside the forest and his clothes were completely soaked through. After several years...Bill Cipher had finally returned. And he was in his dreams.


	2. I Know You'll Do It

Part 2: I Know You'll Do It 

 

Dipper returned to the Mystery Shack after he had a time-out sitting under a nearby tree as the rain continued to pour, worrying about Bill to the point he became a little nauseous. He tried eating the packet of peanut butter crackers he had packed in his bag but they only made it worse. What would Bill have said then, seeing him doubled over a tree stump, retching? Knowing what he was capable of with his all seeing presence he probably had been watching him. He was just that kind of level of twisted.

The house was quiet when he got in. The lights were off; the blue-grey clouds and neon green bug light on the porch tinted the hallway a deep ultramarine colour. Dipper hung his keys up, noticing both Mabel's and Stan's were gone. There was a post-it note left in their place that said, "We have just popped over to Greasy's for pancakes, you're welcome to join us! Love, Mabel." and in brackets (P.S. Some kid called by earlier, he said he knew you. I think he said his name was Adam?) Dipper took the note down, studying the name Adam. He didn't know anyone called that. Perhaps he just mistook him for someone else. 

Dipper took the stairs two at a time, eager to get out of his waterlogged clothes and into something drier and comfier. It would be the first time in a while that he wore full pajamas since he normally preferred to sleep in a plain t-shirt and boxers. Mabel used to be immature about it, especially when she had Candy and Grenda over. They would giggle and whisper to each other about how scandalous it was that he was practically 'naked.' Now they were all older, no one minded. 

At the top of the stairs, light from their bedroom spilled out under the door - Mabel must have left it on in the mad rush for the best pancakes in town. Dipper lazily opened it and got such a fright he dropped his backpack. He switched to instantly alert, his heart skipping a few beats when he saw a very unexpected guest standing in his bedroom with their back to him. He had almost screamed this person had scared the hell out of him so much. Dipper took off his hat, shaking out his damp, wavy hair and tossed the hat onto the bed. "Hey, you. What are you doing in my room? Who let you inside?"  
The guy slowly turned around. His skin was chalk-pale, his black and grey striped sweater a startling contrast to his ghostly complexion. Dark shadows resided under his weary eyes and his hair was a tousled, golden blonde that needed a good brush. Dipper placed him a few years older than himself, maybe twenty-years-old or so.   
"You're...Dipper Pines. Right?" the stranger muttered weakly. If he didn't sound so dead, his voice had the potential to sound smooth and sweet.   
"I am, yeah," he replied cautiously. "So who the hell are you?"  
He held out his hand and said, "I'm Adam Burtin."  
Dipper, still on the defensive, took his hand nervously and they shook. Adam. Was this the guy Mabel was talking about? How did he know Dipper? He had never even seen this guy before in his life. "So, Adam. What are you doing in my room?"  
"Well," he began, licking his chapped lips, "I've been having these weird dreams...or maybe they're nightmares." Dipper sharply let go of Adam's hand.  
"Nightmares?"  
"This voice in my dream, it told me to find you, because you had the answer. It said you'd be here."  
Dipper folded his arms. "Answer to what?"  
Adam fiddled with his long sleeves that covered his hands, pulling at the loose threads that only caused them to come more undone. He didn't look at Dipper, instead his anxious eyes were pinned to the floor. "The solution about how to release me from my suffering."  
At those heavy words, Dipper felt weak at the knees and allowed himself to sit down on the bed. "Christ, Adam, you aren't talking about ending your life are you?" It was a mystery to Dipper as to why this random guy picked him of all people to confide in. He had no idea how to deal with something serious like this.   
"Not really, at least I don't think so. The voice, from my dreams, it said I wouldn't die, I would just feel set free. Or like I'd be in a long but temporary sleep. That's all I want, to escape for a little while."  
"Who is the voice in your dreams, Adam?"  
"I tried asking who they were or if they would let me see them, but all they was, 'Pine Tree will understand.' They sounded male to me."  
Dipper tensed, squeezing his hands tightly until the knuckles turned white. This was bad. Very, very bad. Bill wasn't just in his dreams, he had been visiting this Adam guy too. Bill was looking for a body - a vessel, so he could leave the mindscape and become a part of this world. And he needed Dipper to do it, because he knew the ritual.   
"You should go home Adam."  
Adam looked at him with pleading eyes. "But what about-  
"Just go!" he snapped.   
With a face like a kicked puppy, Adam shoved his hands in his pockets and silently left the room. When Dipper heard the front door slam shut he laid back on his bed, his legs hanging over the side. There was no way he'd let Bill roam around Gravity Falls, not after the first time. 

\---------------

Dipper dozed off after a while, still half on the bed, one arm behind his head, the other across his stomach. Although his misadventures today were never real, his body failed to function properly as though he really did physically exhaust himself and his mind felt like it was swimming, threatening to bring on a headache that was bubbling under the surface.   
"You sure do sleep a lot."   
Dipper kept his eyes closed. He didn't have to check to know he let his guard down and slipped into a deeper sleep.   
"Bill."  
"I can see why your body shut down after I made use of it all those years ago - you're asleep more often than you're awake. That much hasn't changed."  
Dipper sat up with a groan, resting his elbow on his knees. He opened his eyes and the bedroom had transformed into an array of monotonous greys. "You certainly have some explaining to do. I suggest you start with why you decided to show up after all this time."  
Bill folded his arms and crossed his legs, floating above Mabel's bed. "Since Stanley showed up, I assumed it'd be best if I skedaddled for a while, you know, until the drama blew over. I also figured I scarred you kids a little, more than I realised and nothing heals better than time some old sap once said. You're mature now, look at you. No more noodle arms and you've sprouted like a tree!"  
Dipper narrowed his eyes. He wasn't in the mood to catch up. "Anyway," Bill continued, "I slipped into your dreams and oh boy did you remember me. The fear oozed out of you so much I could taste it. I toyed with you a little and despite the fact your tail is between your legs you got sass. I missed our little encounters."  
"That makes one of us," huffed Dipper.   
"Now, now don't be a sour puss," he laughed, floating over and pinching Dipper's cheek roughly. Dipper batted him away like an irritating mosquito. "So you've met Adam! Great guy, well...not really, hence why I'm manipulating him. His family don't speak to him, he ain't got any friends, he lives all alone in a small shabby house, hates his job and has nothing to live for. Plus, I could do wonders with that hair."  
"Bill, you can't take his body. His problems are exactly that - his. You have no grounds to possess him, whether he is a complete isolated nobody or not, so you better back off because his life is not yours to take over."  
"You had no problem letting me inside of you."  
Dipper opened his mouth and closed it again. Bill was trying to trip him up with his wording. "I had tons of problems. You tricked me. I'd have searched for a different solution had I known you'd do that."  
"Tsch, tsch. The world is overpopulated, global warming will pathetically end you all, wars are raging and all you care about is me taking over one measly body."  
"Bill!"   
The demon grumbled, lowering himself onto Dipper's knee. Before he could protest Bill added, "I can't keep contacting you in dreams forever. The reason you need to sleep all the time is because I'm draining your energy to talk to you like this. It'd benefit you to give that kid the instructions, unless you want me to invade every single dream you'll ever have, twisting them into horrid, sadistic nightmares that will empty you for all you're worth and then keep you awake for days on end, sending you into an endless cesspit of insomnia. Is that what you want?"  
Dipper said nothing.   
"I thought so. I know you'll do it, Pine Tree. There's a good boy."

\---------------

Dipper emerged from the mindscape quite peacefully this time and sat up on his bed, an uneasiness from the conversation residing heavily in the pit of his stomach. Bill was asking the darkest of favors from him - Dipper was going to have to help him steal a body from someone he barely knew. What was he going to do once he had it? Torture himself? In the past, when he possessed Dipper, Bill showed his true masochistic nature in a variety of disturbing ways. Another experience of that was greatly undesired. Dipper hoped Bill would leave them all alone once he got what he came for, but in his heart he knew demons like him had a bad habit of overstaying their welcome.

Dipper moved to get up when the muscles in his back twinged painfully. He had fallen asleep awkwardly, still in his damp clothes, leaving a tightness in his back that made him wince, so he stretched his arms to the ceiling and his back cracked in several places. It had grown dark outside since he fell asleep earlier that afternoon, it must've been around eight. The light was still on and Mabel's bag had appeared on the floor at the end of her bed. He had been too busy caught up with Bill to take any notice that his sister had come back - he was normally a light sleeper. 

He wanted to say hi to her and Stan, maybe sit around the T.V and talk about their day - Dipper of course would have to lie. They thought he was asleep, it was an opportune moment to sneak out of the house and give Adam what he needed and let him and Bill deal with the rest. Dipper wished he knew what Bill was planning, but at the same time he wanted to remain oblivious.No matter what, it was probably stupid and dangerous. Sighing mournfully, Dipper grabbed his soggy backpack and took out the rope ladder, bringing it to the window, opening it and throwing the ladder down. 

\---------------

After twenty minutes of stalking around Gravity Falls, it occurred to Dipper that he had no idea where Adam lived. He hadn't thought to ask when he was chasing him out of his room like an old geezer yelling at the kids on his lawn. 

It was cold outside and the wind chill made it a lot worse. Dipper grabbed the navy hoodie from his backpack and slipped it on. It sucked needing to carry around a flashlight for the town's lack of streetlights, it made him feel like a lonesome protagonist in a horror movie that was going to be the first to die.   
"Dipper?"  
"Argh!" Dipper dropped his flashlight and quickly scrambled for it, pointing the light at whoever startled him. "Adam?" That was convenient of him to just show up. Adam was holding up a hand to block the harsh light. "Oh, sorry," Dipper said, lowering it.   
"The voice told me I'd find you wandering around."  
"Oh did it now?" Bill really had been watching him. "Did it also tell you I no longer have access to the journals?"  
Adam nodded enthusiastically, proud to be able to answer. "Yes, in fact it said, 'As if he needs it, the kid has burned holes in that book the amount of time he has spent staring at it's pages. He'll have it memorised.'"  
Dipper hated it when Bill was right. And it was annoyingly often. "Fine." Dipper threw his bag on the ground, getting down on one knee and rummaged around for a sheet of paper and a pen. In rushed, wispy handwriting he jotted word for word the instructions Adam had to follow in order to summon the dream demon Bill Cipher. Stan and Mabel would rather catch him binge drinking or doing drugs. They would kill him for this, then bring him back and do it again. Guilt ridden, he handed Adam the sheet. "When he's making the deal with you Adam, and I stress this, make sure your end of it is crystal clear or he'll twist your words. If you don't understand something, make him tell you. Do you understand?"  
Adam studied the piece of paper for a moment, then glanced up. "Did he hurt you?"  
Dipper raised his eyebrows. "Come again?"  
"The reason your instructions are so thorough and how cautiously you talk about him - is it because he did something really bad to you?"  
"I...suppose he did." An uncomfortable silence settled upon the two of them. "Um, yeah. So, make sure you do everything that's written on there.   
"Thank you, Dipper."  
As Adam walked away, Dipper couldn't handle the rising guilt and terror inside of him. Would it be worth it?


	3. Don't I Know You?

Part 3: Don't I Know You?

The following morning after a well deserved shower, Dipper stepped out of the steamy bathroom, towel drying his hair when Mabel ran up to him gasping for air and grabbed hold of his shirt. "Dipper!" she wheezed. From the heat of her hysterical run around her hair had turned into a wildly frizzy cotton candy clump."Some lunatic out front is scaring away the customers and Stan is getting really mad. I tried to get him to leave but he just wouldn't listen to me - not even when I threatened to pin him down and give him a Mabel makeover!" Dipper shuddered at the many memories he had locked away of Mabel using that tactic on him.   
"Hang on a sec, I'll be right down after I change."  
"Oh please hurry."

Dipper rushed up to his bedroom, pulling his t-shirt up over his head as he walked blindly to the chest of drawers. He grabbed a red flannel shirt and a pair of worn blue jeans. Outside he could hear someone laughing maniacally and a crash that sounded like a garbage bin knocked over. Dipper stepped up to the window, buttoning his shirt and Mabel was right to use the word lunatic, this guy had gone off the deep end for sure. He was lying flat in a pile of garbage that he likely tipped out himself and was examining the wrappers and bottles like they were foreign objects. Dipper pulled out his red sneakers from under the bed and slipped them on with ease. He then pulled on his hat, twisting it left and right until he was content and flicked the rim as an unconscious habit of his. "Let's get this over with then."

Making his way to the front door, Dipper ran into Gruncle Stan in the gift shop swinging the broom around, muttering angrily to himself while Mabel hid behind the counter, peering over the edge. "I swear I'll make that brat pay if he damages any of my property! If he thinks he can just waltz on over here and drive away my money-  
"Stan!" Dipper interrupted him, taking the broom away. "Don't worry about it, let me try and talk to him. Besides you're doing a good job yourself scaring away customers."  
Stan grunted, throwing his arms in the air. "Fat lot of good talking will do, the loon is away with the fairies. Sitting there talking to himself."  
"Just give me five minutes."  
"Fine, but I ain't forking out for any medical expenses."

Dipper stood out on the porch; people were huddled in corners waiting to get home, to the town or the mystery shack but couldn't since they were afraid of what this guy might do if they walked past. "Hey!" Dipper shouted over. Walking down the porch steps, Dipper headed straight for him. "Listen man you gotta leave, you're disrupting the area, you're scaring people and -  
Dipper stopped abruptly in his tracks just a few feet away. He watched as The Stranger got to his feet and brushed himself off like he was simply wiping away lint. "Wait a second..." Dipper wavered, "Don't I know you?"  
The Stranger grinned widely. "That depends...do you recognise me?" he said gesturing to himself. That voice. It sounded so familiar. It sounded like two voices blended together - how someone's accent might grow to change after staying in another country for a long time.  
And then it struck Dipper. "Adam?"  
"Oomf, you scratch at my heart Kid. Usually I would say, 'If I had a heart' but guess who has one now!" he said, circling his chest.   
Finally the penny dropped.   
It looked like Adam, but not quite when he really took in his appearance. His hair gleamed, more golden, his eyes vibrant and the shadows gone, now colour in his cheeks.   
Dipper swiftly snatched his wrist, clamping his fingers around it tightly, earning a devilish grin from Bill. "You have to leave," he hissed at the demon, his gaze flickering from group to group as they attracted more attention. Before Bill could reply, Dipper roughly turned them both around and dragged Bill towards the forest. "First though we need to have a talk."   
Mabel, who had been watching from the window rushed out onto the porch. She cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted, "Dipper! Where are you going? Come back!" Dipper could hear his sister's plea loud and clear but this was a more pressing matter. He left her behind and disappeared past the thickening trees. 

\---------------

Once they were a good stretch into the woods, Dipper shoved Bill forward, releasing his wrist, practically throwing him aside. "Hey watch it Kid!" Bill growled, unsteady on his feet. "I just got this thing."  
"I cannot believe you!" Dipper yelled at him. "I gave Adam the instructions, spinning a few lies here and there to scare him into not doing it! And what do you do? You persuade him to do it anyway!"  
Bill's shoulders sagged and he rolled his eyes. "Sheesh, Kid, do humans come with more than one set of vocal chords because you're straining yours like armageddon's tomorrow." Dipper refused to humor him. After the numerous warnings, Bill went ahead and did the opposite of what he wanted so he wasn't feeling up to cracking jokes and sitting round the campfire.   
"Did Adam really consent to this?"  
"I wouldn't be in this body if he didn't. Besides, look on the bright side, I can roam about here in your world and the Mindscape."  
Dipper threw his arms up. "How is that the bright side!? That is totally the dark, shadowy, shady, sketchy, worst possible side!"  
"Could you lay off with this immense show of extreme emotion, it's making my skin crawl."  
Pulling at his hair, Dipper wanted nothing more than Bill to go away. "Okay, this is how it's going to go down. You are going to keep walking, find some other town to settle in and refrain from your usual hobbies such as world domination and cult forming. I'm going to go back and tell Mabel and Stan you vanished so we can all get on with our lives. Sound good?"  
Bill slowly left the ground, reclining in the air and crossed his arms with a pondering look on his face. "Hmm, sounds a little rough around the edges but..." floating upside down, he added, "I don't think so."  
Dipper made a grab for him but Bill was too quick, floating just out of his reach. Switching to the right way up again he laughed at Dipper's furrowed brows and clenched fists. "You know, I didn't mention this earlier, but the flannel and jeans are a good look for you. So glad you ditched the shorts and body warmer - they made you look like a Boy Scout."  
Dipper's gaze faltered to the ground. He was completely taken off guard by that. "Speaking of looks," he said, desperate to move past that, "you realise now that you have a body it needs showering, grooming, fed and a change of clothes?"  
"Tch, what am I a dog?"  
"I'm only trying to help you." It took a lot more effort than Bill realised to say that.   
Bill abruptly dropped back to the ground, stormed up to Dipper and prodded him hard in the chest. "No you aren't. You're just afraid. You're afraid of me."  
"Of course I am!" he admitted. "I want to stop you, yet I know I can't. If I so much as tried to get rid of you, you'd....you'd.... you would hurt me pretty badly, maybe even kill me." Bill listened, overcome with surprise at Dipper's sudden outburst. "Humans aren't like you Bill, we can't fix a broken arm with the flick of our wrists, we damage easily and heal slowly, sometimes not perfectly. So yes, I'm afraid. You being here, puts not just me but my family in danger."  
As soon as Dipper finished speaking, he felt heavy hearted and a little bit embarrassed. Bill made no move to talk back this time, instead he simply stood there. Dipper turned his back on him and took a deep breath. "Do you understand now?"  
There was silence.   
"Bill?"   
When Dipper turned round, Bill was gone. 

\---------------

It had been a week since he told Bill to clear off and true to his word that is exactly what he did. No stories cropped up about people going missing, deaths or general disruption in town - it was the most peaceful Gravity Falls had ever been. Dipper found it unnerving. Not once did any creatures in the woods make a move to attack him or anybody else, hardly anything showed up at all. It made it difficult for him to continue his research. 

After a particularly fruitless wander through the forest, Dipper threw down his bag by a shallow river he had come across and knelt down by the edge to wash the sweat from his face. It was turning out to be the hottest summer of the decade and unfortunately for Dipper he couldn't handle the heat very well. He pulled himself up, feeling much more refreshed and shook his head to shake off the droplets from his fringe. Sitting there for a moment as he cooled down some more, Dipper glanced back down at the running water and jumped when he saw the reflection of someone standing behind him. He got up in a flash and turned round to find himself faced with...Bill? Was the guy standing before him really him? His hair was trimmed neatly, his golden fringe curling to the left, the rest black and closely shaven. He had ditched the grubby hoodie and jeans for a crisp white shirt, overlaid with a yellow sweater vest, complete with a small expertly knotted bowtie. He wore black slacks and sleek wingtip shoes.   
"You cleaned up nicely Cipher, welcome to the 1920's," Dipper mocked, suppressing a laugh.   
"What, and you call that fashion?" the demon shot back, waving a hand at Dipper's plain white t-shirt and long black shorts.  
"They're...practical," he defended. Dipper had clothes to dress nicely if he wanted, he just didn't want to ruin them in the summer heat. "Anyway aren't you dying in that thing?" he asked, tugging at the vest.  
Kindly removing his hand like a member of staff would to a child fondling the expensive jewelry counter, Bill flattened out the crease Dipper made. "No, because unlike you I can manipulate this body's temperature."  
Dipper pretended to look unimpressed. He lifted his bag and slung it over one shoulder and asked, "So why the sudden appearance? Did you finally get lonely?"  
"Please," Bill scoffed. "As if I would stoop so low as to feel something so trivial. No, I came back because I have a proposition for you."  
Bill and proposition in the same scenario was never a good thing. He was likely going to offer Dipper something he couldn't refuse in return for something twisted. "Is that so? "  
"What would you say if I had information on how to bring back the forest's creatures - information which I will give to you - in exchange for your consent to wear this." Bill reached into his trouser pocket and produced a thin, golden bracelet that gleamed in the direct sunlight. Dipper could see it had characters of his cipher engraved on the inside - they spelt Pine Tree. "I made it just for you."  
"And what does it do?"  
Bill's arm holding the bracelet drooped. "Always suspicious," he mumbled.  
"It's simply a protection charm. If you wear it, anything that tries to attack you will receive a shock from this. Granted it only works once per enemy but it stuns them for a few seconds." That didn't sound half bad, Dipper thought.   
"And you'll tell me how to get the creatures back, so I can continue studying them if all I have to do is wear your trinket?"  
The corners of Bill's mouth turned up. "Of course."  
Dipper took the bracelet from him and slipped it on. "It's kind of loo- Argh!" The bracelet clamped around his wrist like it was binding itself to him. He tried to take it off but it wouldn't budge. "Bill, what the hell is this thing!?"  
Floating over to him, Bill said with a smirk, "Oh and I forgot to mention, it doesn't have any protective properties at all, that was just a lie." Bill relished in the betrayal that washed over Dipper's face as he kept tugging at the bracelet. "What it actually does is it allows me to communicate with you in the real world when I'm not around. Telepathically so to speak."  
"Why the hell would I need something like that?"  
"Oh it's not for you. It's for me. And I'd stop tugging at it if I were you, you're only going to hurt yourself because it will only come off if I will it. You might not see why it's important now but you will."  
"Dammit," Dipper hissed, throwing his arm down.   
"You never learn do you?" Bill laughed.


	4. Don't Tempt Me Pine Tree

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Formally known as Immersion but I felt this title better suited the coming plot.

Dipper lay flat on the roof as the sun set, dyeing the sky a blood orange red. He held his arm above him, stroking the bracelet gently, unaware he was doing so as he drifted off into daydreams. Mabel had asked him about it when he got home because he wouldn't leave it alone - and while telling her the truth had always been his top priority, it was a little more complicated this time. He wasn't ready to tell her about Bill. 

Dipper brought his arm down, setting it across his chest and played with the bracelet, finding himself thinking about Bill as somewhat human now. Gosh, that was weird. Bill had always been this weird triangle demon no bigger than his head with short, thin black limbs and a single eye. Now he had long slender legs, a thin waist that his tailored sweatervest outlined perfectly and two bright cyan eyes. Dipper made fun of his clothes when they met, though truthfully he was enamored by the outfit. Where did he even get those clothes? Did he steal them or use magic to make them?

"Oh come on now, you just spoiled that really sweet trail of thought." Dipper jumped at the sudden voice and sat up, looking all around him before tilting his head back and seeing Bill floating there, his arms behind his head and one leg over the other.  
"Wait, you can... hear my thoughts?" A jolt of fear coursed through Dipper's chest. This was the worst! He had Bill thinking he was deadly angry at him and wanted him gone. Now the demon knew his interest was peaked more than ever - that he had a desire to learn about him in this form.  
"I put a lot of pride in the gifts I give out. None of them are simply 'trinkets,"" Bill hummed, taking a stab at Dipper's insulting choice of words earlier. "When you touch the bracelet, all your thoughts flood straight into my head and I get to hear all the weird and wonderful things that go on in that mind of yours."  
Dipper quickly whipped his hand away from his wrist. This whole time he wittered on about Bill like no one was listening. How much had he heard? When did he tune in? "Couldn't you just get into my head? Like you did before?"  
Bill shook his head. "Only when you're sleeping. But I want the moments of your mind when you're thinking about things as they come. Conscious thoughts. Also," he said, floating closer to Dipper, "you're right, this sweatervest really does justice for this body."  
Dipper felt heat rise to his cheeks. "I didn't mean it in a weird way, I just thought it was a cool vest."  
"Sure you did," he smiled. Bill lifted his arms and stretched. "Well, I have things to do, so this is goodbye for now."  
Dipper got to his feet. "Wait, where are you going?" He was worried Bill might be heading off to plot something. He didn't feel comfortable with the demon being able to go wherever he pleased.  
"Relax kid, it's nothing bad. Besides, what I do is none of your business."  
Dipper gritted his teeth. "Oh but you get to invade my privacy and my dreams and follow me around so you know what I get up to?"  
Bill sighed but he was grinning like an idiot. "I get to be hypocritical, I can do whatever I want because I know you can't do anything about it." If he wasn't acting so cool and collected he would have positively beamed at seeing Dipper's eye twitch and lips pinch thinly. He was so irritated.  
"Whatever, just don't cause trouble."  
"If I didn't know any better I would say you were telling me to be careful, like you cared."  
"Don't kid yourself," Dipper huffed.  
Bill reached over and slipped his hand under Dipper's chin, cocking his head up to look into his eyes. Up close the demon's eyes thrived with energy, a mesmerising sight that he couldn't tear his own eyes away from. "If you do get bored, you can call for me." He tapped the bracelet to illustrate what he meant. "Not that I can guarantee I will always come. I am kind of a big deal and big deals have lots of things to be getting on with." Releasing him, Bill gave a little wave. "Au revoir."  
As Bill vanished from sight Dipper shook his head and thought, what a self-centered mess. 

\---------------

When Dipper climbed back in through the triangle window an hour after his talk with Bill he caught Mabel peeking through the door. He jumped down and signalled for her to come in. "This is your room too you know."  
Mabel stepped in carrying a stack of DVDs. A dangerous amount of pinks and reds dominated the covers meaning they were probably romantic movies. "I know but I've been looking for you all day and I hadn't heard you upstairs so I was checking." She paused and glanced at the window. "Wait were you on the roof?"  
No one used the roof much anymore and somewhat forgot the ledge existed. Dipper took it up as his thinking spot or if he wanted to chill outside without leaving the shack. "I was, yeah. Just thinking out a few things." Talking to demons, you know, the usual, he added to himself.  
"Okay, well anyway!" Mabel thrust the pile toward him and he struggled to get a hold, nearly dropping one. "You promised we would watch whatever movie I wanted once we got to Gravity Falls. Those are all the ones I want to see, so take your pick!"  
Dipper smiled weakly. "So much choice." Not wanting to scrutinize over it for too long he pulled out a random one from the bottom and immediately regretted his decision. Twilight.  
"Sweet!" Mabel said throwing her fist in the air. "I've wanted to see that all year!"  
"Great," Dipper replied meekly. 

"Why did you hate me when we first met?" Bella asked Edward.  
"I did. But only for making me want you so badly."

Dipper rolled his eyes and threw his face down into his hands. This movie was painful to watch. He looked across at Mabel - any closer and she would be touching the T.V screen - seemed to be totally entranced by the weird, demon, fairy, vampire thing. Dipper rubbed at his wrist, it felt like it needed to crack so he massaged and stretched it for a while.  
Dipper found it hard to believe that loving someone so much would make you genuinely hate them. Granted he hadn't much romantic experience himself but this movie portrayed the whole thing as needlessly ridiculous. When he first met Bill he despised him. Interested immensely in him strictly as supernatural phenomena yes, but still despised for sure. And definitely not because of some unconscious feelings he had towards him buried deep within. He shivered just thinking about it. 

Above the shack outside, Bill hovered, his eyes closed, listening intently to Dipper's thought stream flowing into his mind. Some of the things this boy thought to himself, wow. The demon couldn't tell what was more hilarious, the fact Dipper was profusely denying any kind of positive feelings for him or he had soon forgotten all about the magical properties of the bracelet he was so carelessly caressing. Bill craved to show up in the living room and let Dipper know that he heard everything, but Shooting Star would make things complicated. Plus, the more Dipper forgot about the bracelet's powers, the more he could eavesdrop. 

\---------------

The minute the movie ended Dipper jumped off the sofa and headed to the stairs to get his backpack from the bedroom.  
"Wasn't that movie amazing Dipper? Don't you just wish you were Bella?"  
Dipper paused in the doorway, filing through thoughts for something polite to say. "It was definitely...a movie."  
Mabel laid back on the floor, pulling the pillow she was leaning on into a tight hug. "I wish a super attractive vampire would fall in love with me! Or just any attractive demon thing. I'm not picky."  
"The world is your oyster Mabel, we are literally smack bang in the middle of all things supernatural," Dipper added, gesturing to the door. Besides hadn't she already been through eccentric? Mermando? And based on other love interests such as that creep Gabe Bensen and somewhat Sev'ral Timez, Dipper felt pursuing a relationship should be the bottom of Mabel's to do list.  
"Just you wait Dipper, both of us will find someone out of this world!"  
Dipper smiled at her unwavering optimism. "Maybe."  
Mabel sat up and gave him a questioning look. "Hey, are you heading out somewhere?"  
"Just for a walk, I shouldn't be more than half an hour." Dipper needed to clear his head of all things vampire and angsty.  
"It's dark outside, so make sure to bring a flashlight or I will force you to wear a safety jacket that can be seen from space."  
Dipper raised his hands defensively. "Okay, I got it. Flashlight, no jacket please."

\---------------

Dipper zipped up his navy hoodie and took out the flashlight, hitting it lightly with the palm of his hand to knock it back on. He was walking towards the woods, no set location in mind, he just wanted to keep walking, feel the cold air tickle his skin and burn in his throat with each breath. He loved that Gravity Falls was a little backwards town, it meant he could see all the stars in the purple-black sky. Misty, translucent clouds drifted across quickly as the wind picked up and the leaves in the trees rustled together, making it sound like it was raining. The branches rattled and the fallen leaves danced in brief swirls around his feet. It was a gorgeous night. 

Dipper entered a clearing he was familiar with, one with lots of moss on the ground - perfect to lie on when taking a sunny afternoon nap or stargazing. He dropped his shoulder, the bag strap slipping off and set the bag on the ground along with the flashlight. He lay down, bringing his arms behind his head and sighed contently. He had to make sure he didn't fall asleep. 

Suddenly, the flashlight turned off. His eyes shot open and he glanced over at it. Bloody thing was so old it had about thirty rituals to get it to work. He unfolded an arm and reached out for it when the end of a cane came down sharply a hair's length from his fingers. Dipper yelped and scrambled to his feet, keeping his eyes on the silhouette. It didn't take long at all to realise it was Bill. "Are you following me or something?" he growled.  
"What a bizarre question to ask. You should know by now I'm constantly watching you and your family. I suppose that is what you would count as following."  
"That's more like stalking."  
Bill shrugged and twirled his cane lazily. "Same thing. Anyway," he said, pointing the cane at Dipper now, "Just wanted to give you a heads up that I'll be monitoring your dreams tonight. Your sister's too."  
Dipper shoved the cane out of his face. "Stay away from Mabel, do whatever you want to me but leave her out of it."  
Bill grabbed the cane with two hands holding it horizontally, a huge grin spreading across his face like a cheshire cat. "Don't tempt me Pine Tree."  
Dipper couldn't tell if he was excited about that in terms of torture or...something else entirely. "Why are you doing this anyway?"  
"I haven't been in your head in over six years, I'm curious to see how your dreams have evolved."  
"You won't mess with them though? To give me eternal nightmares or anything like that?"  
"Not today," the demon teased. "Speaking of dreams, it's rather late, perhaps you should scoot back and get into bed."  
Dipper turned away and grabbed his bag and the faulty flashlight. "I don't go to bed on your orders B-  
But Bill had already disappeared.


	5. We can make this work if we're smart

P5: We can make this work if we're smart

As promised, Bill came to visit their dreams. He left Mabel's rather quickly, seeing all he needed to see about modern pop culture and vampire boyfriends. He had a feeling Mabel was always going to living life at 200mph, powered by teen pop idols and copious amounts of smile dip. 

Before he slipped into Dipper's dreams though, he could see a pained expression on his face. He tossed and turned, clearly upset about something. Bill quickly entered the dream, taking a moment to gather what was going on and to his surprise, he didn't like what he saw. Rather than a dream it was more like an exaggerated flashback. Dipper saying all the things he really wanted to say at the time about Bill's deal, knowing he would be furious. Unlike the reality, Bill in this dream cowered at Dipper's shouts. The kid wanted him to feel ashamed for what he did. Wanted him to realise his mistake.

Enough.

With a wave of his hand the dream vanished and the demon was back in their bedroom, the hazy orange rays of the sunrise spilling in through the triangle window. Bill glanced at Dipper, still fast asleep, his face glowing as the soft morning sun settled on him. When he heard Mabel rustling in the bedsheets behind him, Bill instinctively teleported himself, far away from the shack. 

\---------------

It was around eleven when Dipper finally roused from his deep sleep. He felt so well rested and refreshed that he easily got straight to his feet and walked to the bathroom to brush his teeth. Pouring the paste onto his brush, he remembered that Bill said he would be watching their dreams. What was it he dreamed about last night? Was it embarrassing? He'd been having an obscene amount of sex dreams lately, he'd hate to have to deal with Bill's taunts and general disgust towards human affection. As he brushed, Dipper failed to conjure up the image of his dream. Maybe that was for the best. 

Downstairs, Mabel and Stan were out on the shop floor along with Wendy who looked up from her magazine to give him a small wave. He waved back when someone walked right into his shoulder, knocking his back a few steps.  
"Oh, man I'm sorry. Are you okay?" The guy reached out and steadied Dipper.  
"Ah, thanks and don't worry about, it was just an accident." Dipper froze, seeing the guy who bumped into him. What on heaven, earth and hell was Bill doing in the shop? Had he lost his mind? "What are you doing here?" he asked, lowering his voice to a strained whisper.  
"I'm...browsing? I swear I haven't stolen anything sir." Something was off about his voice and he was wearing jeans.   
"Bill, people are looking at us, maybe you should leave."  
"Um, my name is Adam. I think you have me confused with someone else." Dipper's eyebrows raised in awe. Bill...released him. Adam had his body back again, he had his humanity back. Adam gave him one last concerned look before exiting the shack, earning a grumble from Stan - something along the lines of steering away perfectly good customers.   
If that was Adam...where was Bill? 

\---------------

As Dipper watched Mabel cross out today's date on the calendar above her bed, a week since Bill disappeared, he began to wonder if the demon had gone for good. If that was the case, wouldn't the bracelet have come off? His eyes fell to his wrist, bound by the gleaming metal. What was he doing out there? Hesitantly, Dipper placed his other hand on the bracelet.   
Um...Bill? he thought. I saw Adam last week in the shop. If you can hear this I want answers. Give me a sign that will let me know what's going on.  
"Dipper!" Stan yelled from downstairs, startling Dipper into letting go of his wrist as though he'd been caught doing something indecent. "Mail for you!"  
Mabel gasped. "Maybe it's a love letter!"  
Dipper shook his head, smiling as he climbed off the bed. "Somehow I doubt that, but for your sake I'll hold out some hope." Mabel squeaked gleefully on his way out of the room. Stan had left the letter on the bottom of the stairs and he sat down on the step to see what it was. It was a golden envelope that sparkled as he tilted it in the light. He turned it over and ripped it open, pulling out the sheet inside. Unfolding it, it read in beautiful, precise cursive handwriting;

You want answers? The Fairy Ring. Tonight. 

Dipper turned it over but that was all it said. He could only assume this was from Bill. Tonight, at whatever time he annoyingly didn't put, he would meet him at the Fairy Ring in the forest, an old tree with a neat ring of mushrooms and flowers growing around the base of the trunk. He had so many questions.

\---------------

Dipper decided to leave around nine, it was a safe enough time that he wouldn't be too early or late. At least he thought so, he really had nothing to go on. 

Getting from the shack to the Fairy Ring took roughly twenty minutes. The moonlight shone through the tree branches and dotted the ground like little spotlights. Dipper could hear the water of the river nearby rushing over the rocks and the buzz of cicadas. He sat down on a flat rock by the tree and waited - there was no sign of Bill.   
"You sitting on that rock in this picturesque landscape waiting on someone to kiss you?"   
Dipper nearly fell off the rock he jumped that far in the air, propelled by his own shock. He looked round and sure enough it was Bill, hanging upside down. He was still in human form, and in the same clothes but, his facial features had changed. His skin clearer, softer, like porcelain. His eyes seemed bigger with more flare to them, sitting below perfectly arched golden eyebrows that followed the curves of his eyes. They held a steady gaze and an air of authority radiated off of him. His cheekbones were prominent, attractively so. The moonlight was catching the golden blond in his hair perfectly, making it shine.   
"Bill," he managed to say, his voice cracking. He coughed to clear his throat, hoping the demon didn't notice. "Where have you been? And that body, did you take someone else's?"  
Bill turned the right way up but continued to float. "Straight and to the point as always." He shrugged. "That is something I like about you honestly. As for this body and my absence, they are linked. I didn't actually feel the guilt of taking that kid's body but I could see it was affecting you negatively. I've been hopping between this world and the mindscape, collecting what I needed to make my own vessel. Believe me when I say it's not a walk in the park ritual, I'm so drained of magic at the moment, the most I can do is hover. I...don't even have enough to return to the mindscape right now." Bill let himself drop to the ground and strode towards the tree, lightly tapping the mushrooms with the tip of his shoe. "Though since I made this body myself I'm even less susceptible to human error and needs. It feels weird being in this form, I had to spend a few days perfecting basic coordination. That was a low point for me. Anyway," he sighed, looking over his shoulder at Dipper. He was gripping the rock in awe of his story, hanging onto his every word. "I just wanted to tell you that before I dunno, cleared off to...Ireland or something."  
The magical storytelling bubble Dipper was in popped. "You can't leave!" he blurted out. With his back to him, the demon smirked.   
"Why not?" Bill brought his arms up behind his back, holding them there. He didn't actually plan on leaving - he just wanted to provoke a reaction out of Dipper.   
"Because..." Dipper faltered on what to say, "um, I want you to help me learn more about Gravity Falls." He also wanted to know more about Bill and his magic - the lengths it could go to, what other things he could create.   
Bill faced him and smiled. There was something terrifying and beautiful about him, the way there was something terrifying and beautiful about poisonous snakes and great white sharks. "I have no where to stay."  
"You can come stay at the Shack, there's a spare room-  
Bill cut him off. "Please Kid, five minutes in that place and I'd be discovered and probably have seven colours kicked out of me by Stan. Your family aren't idiots...well, maybe not all the time."  
"We can make this work if we're smart."  
"Then we're talking about the right kind of people then."

With it approaching ten, Mabel and Stan would likely still be awake - he was going to have to expertly sneak Bill in without his magic on their side.


	6. Think About It

P6: Think About It 

Dipper carefully and slowly opened the front door to the shack. It was old and creaky but if you were patient with it you could move it with little to no sound. Inside, a blue glow filtered out into the hallway from the living room where the T.V was on. It sounded like some over the top drama show, meaning Mabel was probably watching it. 

Bill tapped Dipper's shoulder. "I can still float, let me grab your waist and I'll bring us to the ceiling to fly past quickly. She'll just think it was a trick of the light in the corner of her eye."  
"What? I'm not letting you put your han-  
"Dipper is that you?" Mabel called from the living room.  
Dipper turned and frantically slapped at Bill, muttering go, go, go, go and the demon slipped his arms around his middle, trying his best not to laugh. The moment Mabel stepped foot in the hall Bill had Dipper close to his chest several feet above her, a hand over his mouth. He could feel the kid's heart slamming in his chest.   
"Where is he anyway? Does he have any idea what time it is?" Mabel mumbled to herself, returning to her show. 

Bill immediately took off for the stairs and Dipper guided them to the spare room. At the door, Dipper was set down to rummage in his pocket for the spare room key.   
"Dipper or Mabel! Whichever one of you two is out there, hold on a sec I need to ask you something." Gruncle Stan! The bathroom was just opposite them and Stan was already coming out before he had a chance to hide.   
"You're so hopeless," Bill whispered, picking him up again.   
"Bill! Hey - I'm the wrong way!" he hissed quietly. Instead of having his back to him, Bill picked him up so they were facing, pressed against each other.   
Rather than snapping a witty remark back at him, Bill simply put a finger to his lips as Stan stood halfway out the door, a towel around his waist. "Kids?" he called, looking up and down the hall.  
"Need something?" Mabel shouted up from downstairs.   
"One sec!" Stan briefly slipped back in to throw some clothes on and headed down after Mabel. They were safe now. 

Bill dropped him this time from five feet for being huffy over the way he was holding him. "You didn't need to be such a child. Your family finding out is no bother to me so I'd watch it next time."  
Dipper glared up at him as he got to his feet. "Just because I'm letting you stay here doesn't mean we're best friends."  
"You could at least pretend to like me."  
Dipper just raised an eyebrow, as if to say, really? Bill shrugged, grinning.

Dipper found the key and slipped it out, sticking it straight in the lock and opened the door. "This is you, for now," he said, pushing the door aside. The two of them stepped into the musty room, eyes scanning the area top to bottom. It was rather plain, with a single bed, small bedside table and a chest of drawers. A small window by the bed allowed in some moonlight.   
"I see Stanford goes all out for his guests." Bill tapped the floor and a cloud of dust danced around his shoe.   
"Well to be fair this room hasn't been used in years. There was no reason to decorate it I suppose."  
"It'll do," Bill sighed, collapsing on the bed. He kept his legs hanging over the side. Dipper turned to leave, assuming that was all for tonight when Bill sat up and said something that caught Dipper completely, off guard. "Do you think you'll ever stop hating me?"   
Dipper froze, mid-step and his lips tightened. He knew trusting Bill again was a one way ticket to a big mistake. He had already fooled him once since his return with the bracelet - not that it was anything malicious - but you didn't earn trust by duping people. He didn't think Bill had feelings for him to hurt, however he went with a polite approach anyway. "Who knows Bill? Feelings change given time, at least they do for humans. I know I used to hate a lot of people, like Pacifica for example. I wanted nothing more than to take her down a notch for how she treated Mabel when we were kids but once we saw past her mask she was really just someone who needed a friend. Now I'm not saying it's a guarantee we'll be okay again, I mean we never were to begin with but now that I'm older I think I can handle your personality a little better. So...I really have no idea. We'll just have to see, depending on how long you're around."  
Bill laid back on the bed with a heavy sigh, hands on his stomach. "Humans are so needlessly complicated."  
"Maybe we are a little bit," Dipper agreed and left the room, closing the door after him. 

\---------------

The following morning, Dipper woke with his arm and leg hanging over the edge of the bed, blankets a tangled mess on the other side of him. The sun was so bright it took longer than usual for his eyes to adjust and when they did he saw Bill lying on Mabel's bed, his legs in the air and shoes against the wall. "Morning," Dipper slurred, tiredly getting to his feet. He could feel his hair was sticking up in places it shouldn't be and went to the bathroom to grab the hair brush.   
Bill brought his legs down and sat up, closing over the book he was reading to take enjoyment out of the fact Dipper hadn't quite woken up enough to remember what happened.   
Then he heard a glass smash. "There it is," Bill smirked.   
Dipper shot out of the bathroom so fast he slid across the floor in his socks, skillfully managing to keep his balance in the process. Bill brought his knees up, resting an elbow on one as he leant into his hand, admiring Dipper's bedhead. "What are you doing out of your room? Where's Mabel? Did she see you? And Stan? Also don't go through my sister's things!"   
"Kid! Slow the heart rate a minute would you? Nobody saw me, I made sure no one was around when I walked out. I think they went shopping. The car is gone."  
"Just-" Dipper trailed off, stopping himself from giving the demon a lecture. The very thought of it felt bizarre and out of place, not to mention Bill would probably just laugh at him. Dipper pinched the bridge of his nose and groaned. "At least let me know where you'll be if you're going somewhere."  
Bill stood up on the bed and curiously ran his fingers over carvings in the wooden beams Mabel had left a long time ago. "Since when did I have to check in with you? We aren't bound by any kind of deal let alone one where you're my guardian."   
"Bill I'm serious!"  
"And so am I!" Bill looked at Dipper, his fists clenched, hair still messy. "I'm under no obligation to obey you Kid, unless..." Bill narrowed his eyes. "You actually want to make a deal?"  
Dipper's eyes widened and he stepped back. "No," he said firmly. "No way. Not after everything that happened in the past. You plus deals equals complete chaos."  
"Oh, you do make me blush," Bill teased. He bounced a few times on the mattress before jumping off in front of Dipper and tapping his nose. "You don't have to worry about the past, what good does that do anyone anyway? Besides it wouldn't end up like the last time, not since I have my own body. Instead you could wager something else."  
Dipper backed up some more, allowing some distance between them. "What for? You don't have anything I want. All I asked was to know where you'll be so I can keep you safe from Stan and Mabel."  
The colour in the demon's eyes flashed gold for a brief moment. Dipper had never seen him do that before in his true form so he had no idea what that reaction meant. "Safe," Bill echoed. "Safety for another implies caring. That means you do care about me," he chuckled, tugging at a stuck up curl on the back of Dipper's head. 

Dipper swatted his hand away, heart rate accelerating. How could he slip up like that? He didn't care about Bill - he cared about his family who, if they found out, would go nuts and give him hell for keeping this all a secret. Mabel would be so hurt too, he couldn't deal with that.   
Making a 'hmph' noise at Bill he left him in the middle of the room to go freshen up. He slammed the door shut and locked it. He grabbed the brush and took care of all the knots and tangles and smoothed down his hair until it was back into its normal shape. He gave his teeth a quick brush, swirled some mouthwash around and sprayed on some deodorant. Turning on the tap to wash his face he heard Bill lean up against the door.   
"Sheesh, are you prettying yourself up just for me or is this what you do every morning?"  
"It's what I have to do otherwise I'd be very gross."  
Trails of Dipper's deodorant seeped through the gaps in the door, brushing past Bill's nose as they spoke. It smelt of sandalwood and...pine. He noticed that his new body was incredibly sensitive to taste and smell. He had gone so long without a need for either that the scent easily stirred him up a little.   
"You know, I think I came up with something you might want from me. I'll give you some time to think about it since I can just imagine the look on your face when I suggest it."  
Dipper lowered his hands from his face suspiciously, drops of water rolling down to his chin. "What is it Bill?"  
"You probably don't remember what you dreamt about last night - the sad thing about you humans is that you play these wondrous movies in your heads of lives you yearn to live and then forget them the moment you open your eyes. So I'll give you a little jumpstart - although first you have to come out."  
Dipper wiped his face dry with a hand towel and tossed it lazily back on the rack. What was Bill up to? Why would he want to propose a deal himself?   
"Tick tock, Kid."  
Dipper took the handle and opened the door when without warning Bill reached over and tapped his forehead sending a burst of light exploding behind his eyes. All of a sudden images were flickering in his vision, not memories but dreams.   
He found himself in an apartment he didn't know, spread out on a double bed, entangled with someone as they moved into each other, hands moving everywhere. In the dream Dipped pulled back from the kiss and looked into the other's eyes - he didn't recognise them, it was a random guy - though maybe that wasn't the most significant part of what he was seeing. He was dreaming about being with a guy. How long had this being going on? He knew he was having plenty of sex dreams, but he never remembered who was involved. 

The guy in the dream reached down to unzip Dipper's trousers when the white light flashed again and he was back at the shack, in the bathroom doorway with Bill. Black spots dotted his vision and he was unbelievably dizzy. "Urgh, I think I'm gonna be sick" he moaned, reaching out for the door to steady himself.   
"I hope that's from the side effects of forcing subconscious memories to the surface."  
"Please don't ever do that again." Dipper slowly knelt to the floor, one hand clutching his stomach, the other resting on his forehead. Bill lowered himself to his level, finding this reaction quite entertaining - he'd never done it to anyone before but always knew he could.  
"Like I said...think about it." He stood up straight again and gave Dipper a playful pat on the head before he left him to go for a walk in the forest. 

The words rang over and over in his head along with the lingering scenes from his dream.

Think about it.


	7. Game On, Cipher

Part 7: Game On, Cipher

 

He couldn't stop thinking about it. Not one moment went by when it wasn't on his mind. Even when he was preoccupied with something like T.V or hanging with Mabel it would come right back to him afterwards. Each time made his stomach drop or maybe that was butterflies? Dipper really couldn't tell. Being afraid of Bill and liking him felt like the same thing - it was hard to separate the two. If he knew anything, it was that he shouldn't get involved, it was wrong. Bill couldn't feel, he would just use him and he didn't want that. 

"Dipper?"  
Dipper snapped out of his trail of thought with a jolt - he really zoned out just now. Mabel was rolling her eyes to the right to get him to look over and there was a cashier standing there with an expression a mixture of annoyance and confusion. In Dipper's hands was his wallet and on the counter, a bag of groceries. He spaced out in the middle of paying for them. Lowering his head in embarrassment he pulled out twenty dollars and handed it over.   
"I'm sorry Mabel, I don't know what came over me."  
"It seemed like you were thinking about something really important. If you want to talk about anything don't be shy to hit me up with a one on one."  
Dipper smiled as he accepted his change and thanked the cashier. He needed someone to talk to. If he told Mabel about a normal crush she would be kind, goofy and supportive about it. But if he told her about Bill...  
Wait, did he just think about the word crush? Oh no, no no. That was totally the wrong word. That was on the opposite side of what he meant.  
"Dipper you're gonna break your wrist," Mabel pointed out.  
"Huh?" He looked down at his arm carrying the shopping bag and he was tightly gripping the bracelet. Crap.  
"Have you always had that? It looks so cool! Oh, what's that written on it, is it some kind of weird dead language?" Dipper held his arm away from her as she made a move to touch the bracelet. Mabel didn’t know much about the cipher’s but she would recognise it and get suspicious.   
"Um, it's just a plain boring old thing I found in the shack. A meaningless trinket. In fact if we rush home right now I will try and find you one."  
Mabel's eyes lit up. "Really? I want a creepy old bracelet!"  
Dipper raised a brow. "Mabel you worry me."  
She nudged his arm and ran on ahead. "Hurry up so you can find that bracelet for me and we can make a start on that chocolate cake together!"  
"I'm coming, I'm coming," he laughed, picking up the pace.

\---------------

Back at the shack Dipper went straight to the kitchen to put away the groceries while Mabel changed into some lounge clothes. He turned to put some cans in the cupboard behind him when Bill was there, perched on the counter casually swinging his legs. "Gah!" Dipper yelled, dropping every can. He flinched as they clattered to the floor but Bill didn't bat an eyelid. "Bill! What do you think you're doing?"  
"I know what I'm doing and that is watching you apparently being afraid of everything."  
Dipper's eyes narrowed as he bent down to pick up the cans. "I am not afraid of everything, you just pop up out of nowhere unannounced like it's commonplace. People don't sneak up on other people!"  
"Now that's not true," he added, hopping off the counter, "people sneak up on others all the time. Mabel does it to you a lot."  
"Yeah, when we were twelve."  
Bill fiddled with the bottom of his sweatervest, a look of reminiscence spreading across his face. "It really has been a long time, hasn't it? I don't care much for time since it rarely applies to me as a being or for a majority of the things I do." He leant back on the counter with his elbows, staring down at Dipper as he grabbed the last can. "It must suck to be you. Having to live your entire life worrying about time and if you're spending it wisely before your clock runs out."  
"Bill," Dipper snapped. "If you're not here for anything, leave."  
"Actually I think I might be here awhile."  
Dipper set the cans down on the counter and was about to ask why until he saw the reason for himself. Mabel was standing in the doorway, arms crossed and eyes wide. She looked ready to explode with a million questions and he didn't blame her.  
"Mabel, just let me ex-  
"I can't believe you!" she almost screamed. "This is Bill? That's Bill Cipher? In our kitchen? Are you crazy or just stupid Dipper, I mean come on! He's done horrible things to us!" Bill remained silent and smirking, enjoying the free sibling rivalry show.  
That look on Mabel's face was the last thing Dipper wanted. He thought he had the whole thing under control. In fact, he convinced himself that was true - it was Bill who mucked everything up, he blew their secret. He ran a hand through his hair, lowering his head. "It's been a confusing few days, I don't expect you to believe either Bill or I, but he seems to genuinely have no evil intent this time. He's been around for a few weeks now and the worst thing he did was possess someone and-  
"Is that someone else's body?" she interrupted with a hysterical shriek that even made Bill wince.  
"If you had let me finish I was going to tell you that he disappeared for ages to make his own human form. That's his own body."  
Mabel looked from Dipper to Bill a few times, allowing the information to sink in before asking, "Why does he even need a human body?"  
Dipper opened his mouth to answer when he realised he didn't know the reason why. They both turned their eyes on him, wordlessly demanding the justification for such a bizarre action. Then, in his head Dipper heard a voice, Mabel looked unfazed so she mustn't have been able to hear it. Bill's lips weren't moving either - his guess was he was using the bracelet.

(I think you know why Kid. You have a craving, and it's eating away at you every day you try and ignore it - by pushing it deeper down inside. Suppressing an urge like that will only end badly. Just let me help you and in exchange all I ask is that you run a few errands for me.)

Errands, what did he mean by errands? Dipper wondered.   
"We're waiting!" Mabel pressed, tapping the floor impatiently with her foot. Dipper reached over and held her arm.  
"He's not going to tell us." Despite already knowing himself. Bill was using it to tempt him and he hated to admit that it was working and he hated it even more that Bill knew that. "Let's just backoff."   
"No way! I'm not-   
But then Bill vanished. He was able to teleport again. That meant more of his magic had returned. 

\---------------

After two hours of talking to Mabel about various things that happened since Bill's arrival she had to leave for a coffee meetup with Candy. Gruncle Stan was still out somewhere as well so Dipper had the house to himself.   
He retired to his room at around half four and lay face down on his bed, feeling more mentally exhausted than he ever remembered being. Dipper kicked off his shoes and decided he was going to nap off this weird mood. 

At that moment Bill appeared right above Dipper, not that he noticed straight away with his face buried in a pillow. He lowered himself until he was almost touching Dipper and gently poked his ear. "Whaaat, the hell," Dipper screamed, sitting up quickly and rubbing his ear. Bill floated up in time to miss being headbutted and held his stomach as he laughed at how easily startled Dipper was.  
"I don't think I will ever tire of this. You're hilarious kid."  
"Urgh, how many times are you going to show up today?" Dipper groaned, rubbing his eyes. "Why won't you leave me alone? You're worse than a mosquito or a starving alley cat."  
Bill tutted at him, shaking his head. "I'm not going anywhere until I've had my fun. Since you don't want to make a deal, how about we do an old fashioned human bet?"  
Dipper sighed heavily. "How is that any different?"  
"Because!" Bill chimed, floating closer to him, "I worked it out like this. I bet that I can get you to offer yourself to me without forcing you or using my magic. If you lose, you are bound to me to do as I say for as long as I require your services or your family will pay for your disobedience - but if you win," he continued, his power hungry grin fading slightly, "after two weeks of my attempts failing, I will leave Gravity Falls and never come back."

Dipper swallowed nervously, a burning heat rising in his cheeks as his face flushed. It was his chance to be rid of the demon forever and it sounded so easy. He simply had to ignore his temptations. He glanced up at Bill's outstretched hand engulfed in blue flames and slapped his hand into the demon's, shaking it firmly. "Game on, Cipher."


	8. Prove It

P8: Prove It 

Mabel woke up from a particularly dreamless sleep to the sound of her brother whimpering. She sat up in bed, rubbing her eyes into focus and looked over at Dipper as he squirmed almost violently under the bed sheets, eventually kicking them off onto the floor. She thought about intervening until Dipper jumped awake and rolled off the bed with a yell. Mabel winced as he slammed onto the hardwood floor, leaving his legs dangling in the air.

"Dip! Dipper, oh my gosh, are you okay?" she asked frantically, getting down on the floor next to him. He groaned both from the pain and humiliation for a number of reasons and allowed Mabel to help him up. She gasped when she saw the dark circles under his eyes and that he was sporting a bird's nest of a bedhead. "What on earth where you dreaming about last night?"

Oh it was nothing of this earth, Dipper thought to himself. All night that demon interfered with his dreams - seemingly normal at first, but every single one ended with him held captive underneath Bill as he had his way with him. Dipper touched his face that felt like it was burning red hot and he turned away from Mabel to keep her from seeing the evidence of last night's dreams. "I'm sorry if I woke you Mabel, I was just having these...seriously bizarre dreams - like, there were...robot dogs and uh, bunnies with lazer eyes and stuff chasing me," he lied.  
Mabel's eyes lit up imagining it and she jumped up and down on the spot. "Nightmares?" she squealed, "They sound like amazing dreams to me! You gotta tell me all about it at breakfast!"  
"Sure," he said with a tired smile. "Let me get myself together first and I'll meet you down there."  
Mabel gave him a salute and scampered off to the kitchen. Once she was gone he let his shoulders sag and let out a dramatic sigh. What a night, Dipper thought. He must have got one, maybe two hours of sleep, tops? He felt wrecked.

Dipper shuffled towards the bathroom, not looking forward to tackling his hair, when the sound of slow, measured footsteps echoed in the hallway, freezing him to the spot. They stopped just outside his room. He backtracked to find Bill had casually stepped up to the doorway and was leaning against the frame with his shoulder, sliding his hands into his pockets.   
"Ooh," Bill said, pretending to look away from something as horrible as a car crash. "Did I do that? Tsch, tsch, I must have gone a little overboard last night, huh?" A wide, proud grin spread across his face, earning a scowl from Dipper.   
"You're not going to get me to crack that easily," Dipper assured him.   
"Of course that's not my only tactic," he said, waving his hand, "you'd get bored of that eventually since there is such a thing as overexposure after all. No, I have better things in mind. That's not to say I won't slip in a nice dream for you now and again."  
"I will win," Dipper growled, saying it more to himself than Bill.   
The demon flashed his teeth, chalk white and straight. "Prove it." With that he was gone. 

\---------------

Over the next few days, Bill continued to infiltrate his dreams which varied in extremity. And as the demon promised he used a wide variety of other quirky methods to trip Dipper up. There was the time Dipper went into town and walked right into a good looking girl after spacing out with his headphones in. He helped the girl pick up her groceries, considering whether or not he should introduce himself - and as he handed the groceries back Bill was the one standing in her place staring down at him. Dipper screamed and dropped everything again, but when he blinked she was back and Bill was gone. She looked at him uncomfortably before quickly snatching up her things and hurrying away.

Then there was the time he got the train. Dipper fell asleep against the window for an hour or so, struggling with another Bill dream, and then the train jerked on the tracks, knocking his forehead against the glass, waking him up. Dipper groggily looked around him and found that all of the passengers had turned into Bill. Granted there were only eight others, but in unison they said, "If you want more than one guy to take you, now is your chance. You're at that experimental age right?" 

When he took a shower, sometimes Bill's silhouette appeared on the other side of the curtain and he would stand there, probably watching Dipper's silhouette as he showered- other times he actually came up behind Dipper in the shower and tugged at his hair playfully, only to disappear after.

The days when Bill hadn't shown up for a long while and everyone else was out he would retreat to his room for a while to pleasure himself. Each time when he got close Bill would show up and climb on top of him with lust filled eyes and offer to finish him off. Those moments were the hardest - on far too many occasions he nearly gave in, knowing someone like Bill would render him senseless with ecstasy. 

But no. Dipper made sure to shoot down every annoyance and temptation Bill threw at him. A few days being pent up was nothing if it meant keeping his soul his and his alone. Only two more days. Two more days. 

\---------------

The following day, Mabel sat across from Dipper at the table, looking at him with concern as he continued to absentmindedly gnaw on his spoon and stare out the kitchen window. Stan lightly kicked Mabel under the table and gave her a look that asked, 'What's up with him?'  
Mabel ate another spoonful of soup. She knew something was up with her brother but her guess was as good as Stan's - it was a mystery. He hadn't slept the last three nights and constantly looked around him like he expected something to fall from the ceiling. Was something after him? Surely if it was another Gravity Falls monster Dipper would be bouncing around her like an excited puppy to help him go after it. This was definitely something bigger and she needed to find out what before Dipper's lack of self care really did damage.   
"Thanks for the food," he mumbled, rising in his chair with the bowl. He rinsed it off in the sink and headed back upstairs.   
When he was of earshot, Stan asked, "Did he get dumped or something? Seriously, the moment the kid walks into the room everything turns grey."  
Mabel sat up straight in her chair as a realisation hit her. BILL. 

\---------------

Dipper preferred it when Mabel was in the room with him - he knew that way Bill wouldn't show up. But he was just so exhausted and not in the mood to answer her invasive questions - all he wanted to do was climb into bed. 

The past few days, Dipper had intentionally kept himself awake so that Bill couldn't mess with his dreams. So far so good...except his eyes were begging for sleep now. His eyelids started to droop as they grew heavy and it was difficult to fight it when they felt this weighed down and closing them felt so good. Every time he caught himself dozing off he would jump awake, like his body knew it was vital he didn't fall asleep. 

Dipper struggled with this for twenty minutes before he decided a five minute power nap wouldn't hurt - that wouldn't be enough to get into a deep sleep where Bill could get at him. With his clothes and hat still on he shuffled down in his bed on top of the blankets and closed his eyes. Just five minutes. 

\---------------

Two minutes into his nap, Dipper could see a faint golden glow beneath his eyelids. With great effort he opened his eyes, his vision surprisingly blurred already. He blinked several times for his sight to come back into focus.   
"Hey there sleepyhead," Bill grinned. His nose was almost touching Dipper's. Normally his first reaction would be to flinch and scream, but Bill had been showing up so often that the initial fear kind of wore off. That wasn't to say Bill didn't still frighten him. "You've hardly used your bracelet these past few days, someone might start to think you don't want to talk to me."  
"Fine with me," Dipper spoke into his sigh.   
Bill straightened up and stretched out his arms, fingers linked to relieve some cracks, not that he needed to, he just liked doing it. "So what's it gonna be this time?"  
"Can't I have one night of sleep?"  
Bill let himself drop to the ground and loomed over the side of the bed, casting a shadow over Dipper. "That isn't how it works. We agreed that I could use any means necessary as long as it wasn't me forcing you."  
"You pretty much force me in my dreams."  
Bill tapped Dipper's forehead in time with each, ah, ah, ah. "That isn't true, I tempt and tease you until you give in upon your own will. If it was force then the deal would have been resolved and I would be gone. And," he added smoothly, "it's not force when you kiss back."  
Dipper shut his eyes tight and groaned. Two more days, two more days, two more days.

His eyes shot open when he felt Bill get on top, straddling his hips. The demon reached down and placed a hand on either side of his waist, raising his shirt a little. "Bill, get off."  
Bill gently massaged his sides, exposing more of his abdomen. "I dunno, I think you kind of like this."  
"Tch, yeah right."  
Bill paused a moment to tilt his head to the side and raise his eyebrows. "Are you really going to try and lie to me when I'm sitting on top of you?" Dipper's cheeks burned. "Your body gives away a very obvious sign when you do like it, regardless of what you say."  
Dipper couldn't help that his body responded that way. Sometimes it happened for the weirdest reasons.   
"I'm not in the mood Bill." Ignoring his protest, Bill reached over and tucked a stray strand of hair behind Dipper's ear. His whole body shivered and he slapped the demon's hand away. "How many times do I have to tell you to leave my ears alone?"  
"Not enough it seems. I just can't seem to leave them alone when simply brushing against them sends your heart racing. How can I possibly hold myself back?"  
Dipper tried to shove Bill off of him but he pinned his wrists to the mattress. "Urgh, Bill! Why do you even care about anything like this? How can this be of any importance to you?"  
Bill shrugged his shoulders. "With a human-esc form I'm simply curious to try out certain things. Things we can offer each other." He leaned in close and Dipper picked up on the scent of sandalwood. Was Bill copying him?

Dipper had a million and one things to snap back at him with, but with Bill so close he couldn't look away from his eyes. They were vibrant gold, as though fire burned within his irises. Dipper could see himself in them, helpless and flushed. No wonder Bill was teasing him so much, his whole body gave himself away. At least it was just a dream. Though a lot of the time he couldn't tell if the Bill in his dreams was the real one manipulating his subconscious or he was dreaming about him all on his own. This dream certainly felt different. They never talked this much and he was hyper aware of all his feelings mentally and physically. 

Dipper shrank down in the bed some more as Bill pressed his forehead to his. The demon's bangs tickled the bridge of Dipper's nose and he could feel his breath on his cheeks. The hold on his wrists loosened, and as if it was the most natural thing in the world, Dipper wrapped his arms around Bill. There was a moment of surprise that flickered in his eyes but it was gone as quickly as it came. Since it's just a dream, Dipper thought to himself, he pressed his lips to Bill's, pulling his body closer. His heart hammered in his chest which Bill could feel through his own chest as they pressed together and Dipper gripped at the back of Bill's sweatervest, grabbing fistfuls of the fabric. Bill raised his hands to cup Dipper's face and they stayed like that, entangled with each other, kissing for a good fifteen minutes before Bill broke away to give the kid some air. Dipper's cheeks burned bright red and he was breathing heavily. He didn't look close to being finished with Bill. He was about to pull the demon back down when his eyes flashed blue for a brief moment. Dipper sat up quickly and wiped his mouth, his heart beating rapidly from panic now. "Bill what was that?" The demon looked off to the side. "Bill! What. Was. That?" he shouted again. 

Dipper cried out as the bracelet began to burn on his wrist. He tried to break it off but as usual it stayed put. "Stop it!" he yelled at Bill. "Take it off! Bill you're hurting me!"  
And right then, the bracelet cracked and slid off, hitting the mattress and clattering to the floor. When the metal clang subsided everything went dead silent. Dipper examined his wrist, the engraving from the bracelet now burned into his skin. He stared at it in horror, not entirely certain what that meant. "Bill..." he said, his voice shaking. He looked up at him. He was scared. Moments ago they were holding each other close and making out - it was bliss. Then in a matter of seconds it all shattered and fell apart. 

"This isn't a dream Kid. It never was."  
Dipper placed his hands over his mouth as the pieces came together. He never fell asleep, Bill just...tricked him.   
"You're mine now," Bill told him, his voice drained of all emotion. "I win."


	9. You couldn't let me have one s'more?

Part 9: You Couldn't Let Me Have One Smore? 

 

Dipper had been tricked before by Bill, but not like this. Nothing as extreme as this. 

After the deal was resolved, Dipper soon discovered the engravings burnt into his skin was Bill's mark on him. Should anyone or anything try to harm him it would summon Bill to his side to take care of the problem. Occasionally Bill used it to speak to him when he was elsewhere. He wasn't sure if that made him feel safe or uneasy. It certainly made his usual route through the woods in search of creatures to document very difficult. If anything so much as hissed at Dipper and gave him a jump scare Bill would be there, eyes glowing red. At least he didn't have to worry about absentmindedly toying with the bracelet, allowing Bill to hear his every thought. Now Bill could only hear him when he initiated the conversation. Dipper hadn't quite figured out yet how to contact Bill mentally on his own. 

The first few days bound to Bill took a toll on Dipper - he constantly felt weak, dizzy and always needed sleep. Bill simply said, "It'll pass Kid, just ride it out," as if that would be comforting. Maybe it was in the demon's head. At first Dipper refused to speak to Bill due to such a large scale betrayal, and he kept it up for a whole twenty minutes until Bill got agitated and used the mark to send burning pain into his wrist again until he begged him to stop. The burning wasn't real, it was all in his head but Bill was a master of the mind and used it to his advantage. 

It was no surprise when Mabel popped up left, right and centre firing questions as quick as bullets at him. Dipper caved in and told her everything after a week of the deal's completion. He felt alone and on edge every second of the day. With his sister by his side the weight on his shoulders was shifted, at least slightly. They both agreed to leave Stan out of it and definitely keep it out of the daily letter they wrote to Ford. 

Despite how torturous Bill made the deal out to be, he kept to himself most of the time. He was around less and only popped up if he really needed Dipper to fetch something for him or to try out new magic. Bill was still in his dreams, even after he stopped interfering. Dipper just couldn't stop thinking about the kiss. How could he? 

At the time, it meant the world to him. He felt so important that someone ordinary like himself was having an intimate moment with a being as powerful as Bill. Bill made him feel important. In the end he would tell himself to get a grip because Bill felt nothing and never would. A demon couldn't possibly understand. If he thought anything would happen between them he was only kidding himself. And after all Bill had done, why would he even want something to happen?

\---------------

"You look so sad Dip," Mabel said from the kitchen doorway. She approached slowly, unsure if he wanted company. Dipper stood with his back to her at the counter, lazily stirring his freshly made cup of ground coffee. It wasn't particularly good coffee, it tasted a little sour, but it was ninety-nine cents at the convenience store and Stan wasn't having big brands in his household when there were bargains about.   
"I guess I've been overthinking a lot lately. I know I shouldn't and just try to relax but..." Dipper looked down wistfully at the mark on his wrist as he set the spoon in the sink. Mabel fiddled with the cuffs of her oversized sweater, feeling her brother's pain as he went through each day battling conflicting emotions all on his own. This wasn't like being in the forest where she could physically attack the problem alongside Dipper to make it go away. 

Mabel came up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist. Dipper held his own arms higher to keep her from spilling his coffee. Then suddenly, Mabel pressed her cheek against his back and held on tighter. Her warmth and comfort seemed to wash away his worries and clear his head. He smiled sadly and lowered one arm to hold onto hers. "I know everything isn't okay for you right now Dipper and it's hard. I can't begin to imagine what it feels like to be in your situation, although don't think for one second I have ever judged you in all of this. All I can tell you is to do what feels right. Do what makes you happy, because...I can't stand seeing you this torn up - like you've lost your way." Mabel pulled away from Dipper and she turned him to face her. "You're my hero Dipper and if anyone can get past such a mess, it's you."  
Dipper stared at his sister, taken off guard by her small encouraging speech. "You are such a dork," he teased, ruffling her hair.   
"Hey! I'm trying to be sincere here! This is some deep stuff!"  
Dipper set his coffee down and pulled her into a hug, one arm around her waist, his other hand behind her head as he buried his face in her neck. "I heard you. Loud and clear."  
"This...is more awkward than our awkward sibling hug."  
There was a brief moment before they rectified that by patting each other's back and reciting, "Pat, pat," in unison and then laughing. 

\---------------

The following morning, Mabel and Stan were gone. Dipper woke to find a post-it note dangling from his forehead courtesy of Mabel that said, 'Gone to get smores supplies for later tonight!' A nostalgic smile spread across his face as he crumbled the paper in his hand. Smores were the campfire snack of his childhood - it had been far too long since he indulged in the sugary dessert. Or sweet things in general. Suddenly and unbidden, a craving for sugar struck him. 

Dipper got dressed and pulled on the pine tree sweater Mabel made him last christmas and a pair of blue jeans. Straightening his cap, he flicked the brim and grabbed his wallet. Normally it would take Mabel holding onto his ankles and begging incessantly to wear one of her sweaters - although in this case, it was laundry day meaning his shirt supply had depleted. Desperate measures and all that. 

Remembering to snatch his keys off the hook in the hallway, Dipper was fully prepared to head to the convenience store. He jumped off the last few steps coming down the stairs and opened the door. The moment he stepped out he was greeted by a solid wall. "Oof!" He had walked straight into someone and for a moment he assumed it was Stan until he caught the familiar scent of sandalwood. Backing up, Dipper rubbed his nose that got squashed and saw it definitely wasn't Stan, but Bill.   
"I hope I didn't break anything, I hate it when my things fall into disrepair."  
Dipper gritted his teeth. "Don't talk about me like I'm object."   
Bill raised an eyebrow, smirking. "Oh, dear me, did I hurt your feelings?"   
Dipper shoved past him and marched down the porch steps. It had been raining last night and the ground covered in pine needles, leaves and moss felt spongy under his feet. The air had cooled, although it would soon warm up by early afternoon. Bill leisurely followed Dipper, keeping behind him and making no move to get ahead or walk alongside him. "It's been a few days, aren't you happy to see me?"  
Dipper remained stubbornly silent. A blanket of grey clouds slowly crept towards the town as they walked, meaning it was probably going to rain again.   
"I'll take your muteness as a sign of shock - you are so shocked and thrilled to see me, the words have caught in your throat. I understand. I have that effect on people. Anyway I digress, " Bill chirped on, clasping his hands together, "I want you to come with me tonight."  
This was a first, Dipper thought. Bill always cleared off on his own to do whatever it was he did and Dipper was his lackey, or rather he had been made to feel that way. "Whatever it is you want, I'm sure it can wait. I'm busy tonight."  
Bill appeared right in front of him without warning, nearly causing him to fall backwards. "You don't get 'busy,'" Bill said matter of factly. "We have a binding contract and do I need to remind you what that means?" Dipper hazarded a guess that he meant the mark. He glanced off to the side like a child who didn't want to admit they did something wrong. "Good. Now, whatever it is you're doing later, IT can wait. I will come to collect you tonight. Verstehen?"  
Before Dipper had formed the word whatever, Bill vanished, leaving a gust of swirling leaves in his wake. 

\---------------

Hours later, when the sun had only started to set, Mabel burst out onto the porch, holding a jumbo bag of marshmallows in each hand. Dipper looked up from his own journal he had been keeping and had to suppress a laugh. "Dipper come on! It's smores time!"  
Rising out of his chair he checked his watch. "Mabel, it isn't even seven yet."  
"Who cares? I want smores now!"  
Stan emerged from the front door carrying the box of crackers and chocolate. "That kid hasn't changed one bit," he said to no one in particular. He glanced at Dipper, journal in hand and said, "and same goes for you apparently." Dipper shyly tucked the journal away behind him on the chair. "You joining us or what?"  
"Wouldn't miss it," he beamed, falling into step with Stan as they headed to the campfire round back. 

Mabel had already gotten to work and had the fire going. She tore open the bag of marshmallows and sniffed at the sugary aroma emanating from the packet. "I better not be seeing you eat any marshmallows unless they are eaten properly!" Stan jokingly scolded her.   
"They'll all be gone by how long you lot are taking!"   
There were three log 'benches' surrounding the fire and Dipper sat down next to Mabel while Stan took his own across from them. Dipper was thinking about how relaxed he felt - that this was like old times at the shack in previous summers. He needed some normalcy, something familiar to get his mind off all the chaos. Dipper knew smores night was his sister's idea. She didn't entirely understand the battle he was fighting inside himself. Hell, he wasn't even sure if he did. But this was her way of helping. 

They all started to toast their first marshmallow and to fill the waiting time Mabel rattled off some summer memories like an elderly woman remembering childhood like it was centuries ago. Behind Dipper in the bushes he heard a rustle. He thought nothing of it at first, assuming it was some wildlife until something poked him in the back and he shrieked. Mabel stopped in the middle of her sentence and her and Stan gave him questionable looks. "Um, my bad. I just dropped something and it rolled off into the bushes. I'll be right back."   
Shrugging, Mabel jumped back into her retelling and Stan continued listened eagerly. Dipper hopped off the log and shoved aside the prickly bushes enough to get through onto the other side. Nothing immediately was there but once his eyes adjusted to the darker area he picked out a silhouette leaning against a tree up ahead. He jogged over to the tree and the closer he got the more of Bill's features became clear. Even in the darkness his eyes shone a tantalising gold.   
"You couldn't let me have one smore?" he grumbled.   
"I don't really know what that is but I'm going to assume it's far less important than what I'm about to show you."   
Dipper folded his arms defensively. "I can't be away for that long, I just told them I dropped something beyond the bushes. They'll get suspicious."  
"I've already put them to sleep," said Bill with a wave of his hand. "They will wake up in about twenty minutes. Plenty of time." Bill held out his hand and flashed what almost looked like a sincere smile. Though Dipper knew better. He took his hand and Bill roughly pulled him in like reeling in a big catch and they were close enough that their noses nearly touched. "Hold on tight."  
"Wait, what are yo-whoaaaa!" Bill had wrapped his arms around Dipper's waist and bent his knees before taking off straight up. The rush of wind tore through his clothes in wild ruffles and his hat nearly blew off but Bill pulled him up in a bridal hold so Dipper could use one arm to hold onto Bill and the other to keep his hat down. The air whipped around them in fleeting pockets of summer night heat and high in the sky chills. Out here in the woods far more stars were visible than back in the city. They dotted the whole sky. The sun was almost gone, leaving the rest of the evening sky in a cold palette of aquamarine. It was like looking at the ocean, but glistening with stars. At this time Dipper normally sat tucked away in his room with his journal writing up new entries or editing old ones. Other times he chose the porch, and being up here he regretted how little time he spared to simply look up and take in all this.

Bill glanced down at Dipper, smiling at how wide the kid's eyes were. Despite how the wind was blowing his fringe across his eyes now and again he remained unblinking. "I figured you don't venture outside much at night and since there is a brief window of time where the sky transforms into this fantastic display I had no choice but to simply drag you up here."   
Dipper finally managed to pull his gaze away from the sky to look at Bill. He moved aside the hair that was getting into his eyes and froze when reflected in Bill's he could see the stars.   
"What's wrong?" Bill asked, noticing he stiffened in his arms. "Are we too high up?"   
The blue-green sky, the stars, the entire moment - it triggered something in Dipper and for the first few seconds he wasn't registering his actions as he leant up and pressed his lips to Bill's - kissing him with weeks of confusion, anger, loneliness.

Bill almost dropped Dipper he was so surprised. The demon couldn't deny it was a good kiss. It was so desperate - filled with pent up desire that the poor kid didn't know what to do with. 

Then Dipper abruptly pulled away, using his arms to keep Bill at a distance as if that made sense with the demon holding him hundreds of feet in the air. He didn't say anything, he was too shocked by what he'd just done.   
"Pine Tree, did you just kiss me?"


	10. This Doesn't Mean I Trust You

Part 10: This Doesn't Mean I Trust You

 

Bill cocked his head to the side, revelling in the raw display of discomfort on Dipper's face. He was shaking in Bill's arms, doubtfully from the cold air and wouldn't look him in the eye. What a shame, Bill thought, the stars reflected quite nicely in my eyes. 

"I hope you don't want me to sit you down for a consoling talk. That's not...how I like to do things," Bill said, shrugging.   
"Don't stress yourself over it. I assumed as much anyway." This time Dipper did steal a glance at the demon. The left side of his face glowed radiant in the night sky light and Dipper simply knew there was no human alive with eyes like Bill. Dominant and fiercely hypnotic. They were merely a preview to the demon's destructive personality. 

"Put me down," Dipper ordered. He lowered his head again, afraid he might unravel right there and then.   
"That's it huh?" Bill sighed. "Avoid the problem? I don't get it. What is the point of you humans having emotions if every time you let them show for real you punish yourself for it?"  
Dipper clenched his fists. "Don't talk about things you don't understand. Now, put me down."  
"Suit yourself Kid." Bill slipped his arms out from under Dipper and released him in mid air.   
"Bill!" he cried out. Bill folded his arms and watched as Dipper plummeted straight towards the forest below at a swift rate. His hat flew off and Bill snatched it up and examined the headgear, pretending to be oblivious to Dipper's screams for help.   
"Don't just stand- or float, fly, whatever! Would you just help me!?" His voice grew fainter with each word as he fell further and further away from Bill. The tops of the trees came into perfect view and the real panic set in.   
"BILL!" he screamed, almost straining his throat.   
Bill let his arms fall by his side and heaved a theatrical sigh. "So indecisive." In a flash he was gone and for a moment Dipper feared he had cleared off and left him to hit the ground. Thankfully Bill reappeared beneath him and caught him - the force knocking them back a good few feet. Dipper brushed the hair from his face with a trembling hand and thought he had never wanted to be on the ground so much in his life.   
"What the hell is your problem?" Dipper snapped. Bill gradually took them back to the forest floor and set Dipper down on his own feet. "I could have died! I'm not sure if you know this, but that's our game over!"  
Bill rolled his eyes. "You are so dramatic sometimes. Is Shooting Star ever as serious as you?"  
"Bill can't you be serious for one second?"  
The demon's eyes flashed a brief shade of red as he looked straight at Dipper. Bill stepped forward sharply and slammed the palm of his hand against the tree trunk right by Dipper's ear. Dipper shrunk back against the trunk and swallowed hard. A few leaves shaken out of place fluttered down between them and Bill leant in close. "Who exactly do you think you're talking to Kid? Don't forget that just because I look human, doesn't mean I can't still tear you apart."   
Dipper felt an icy rush sing through his veins as all colour drained from his face.   
"Did you ever think about how tired it makes me every time you deny how you feel? Honestly it's damn painful to watch - like a car crash you can't look away from or a small animal that got run over breathing its last breath. You're so hopeless." With his free hand Bill tilted Dipper's face up to meet his own. He barely gave Dipper a chance to register the kiss before his tongue was slipping into his mouth. It was warm and slick as their tongues intertwined, exchanging saliva, and the urgency on Dipper's end brought Bill perilously close to laughing. 

That's it, thought Bill, just give in. Let the urge take over. 

Bill was a little surprised to find Dipper's hands wander freely to his shoulders, pulling him closer. Dipper wasn't very conscious at that moment, but it was exactly what needed to happen to get the kid to realise the gravity of the situation. 

The desire that smouldered between them flared, making Dipper feel vibrant and alive. Every nerve sensitised, preparing for his touch. The demon's touch, that turned even the loudest sounds to white noise and his surroundings to a mass blur. Bill pulled away from the kiss, earning an almost disappointed whimper from Dipper. Dipper's cheeks felt unbearably hot and only got worse the longer Bill's stare lingered on him, like a predator who had it's prey right where he wanted it. Bill raises his hands, cradling the sides of Dipper's face and raked his fingers through his hair. "Once we start, I'm not letting up, you hear me?" The low growl of his authoritative voice made Dipper weak at the knees. He was grateful for the tree behind him he was using to prop himself up. Dipper simply nodded at Bill's instruction. He was helpless to resist the drugging pleasure of submitting to him. 

Bill's hold tightened and he forced Dipper to look up properly. "No, I want you to talk to me. Use your words."  
The riot of emotions Dipper felt right then had his heart go into overdrive. "I understand." He hoped desperately Bill hadn't noticed the quiver in his voice. This was already the most embarrassing thing he'd ever let himself get into. 

"Kiss me." The words were gentle but his tone was an order. Dipper parted his lips in keen expectancy and Bill took his mouth with searing passion, tasting him with low deep licks. Dipper moaned into the kiss, spurring Bill to clutch fist fulls of Dipper's hair, too impassioned to be gentle. Dipper became intensely aware of his thrumming pulse and how hard his heart was beating. With their chests pressed up together like this he prayed Bill was too preoccupied to notice the little things - the raw reactions he was dragging out of him. 

It wasn't fair, Dipper thought. Bill could read him like an open book no matter how well he concealed his emotions. Or at least thought he did. And here they were, pressed up against a tree, Bill making a mess of him as he unravelled so easily with each and every caress and kiss. It was humiliating. All summer Dipper tried to keep a serious front - that he was the kind of guy not to be messed with now that he was older and more sensible. Weeks of effort were now cast aside as he allowed himself to be swept away. But oh, how fantastic it felt. How god damn fantastic. 

Bill finished off their last kiss and pressed their foreheads together. "No going back," he warned. When Dipper said nothing, his only response tears forming, Bill lightly stroked the top of his head, assuming that would do for reassurance. "Don't worry kid, I'll make sure you feel rapture upon rapture of pleasure. You won't even regret it when I'm done with you."   
Dipper let out a shaky breath. "This doesn't mean I trust you."  
Bill's eyes softened. "I know."

Dipper couldn't take it anymore and gave in to his weak legs. He slowly slid down the side of the trunk, ignoring the bark scratching at him through his clothes. Bill lowered himself to his knees and moved in for another kiss. The rain clouds Dipper had noted earlier were now directly overhead and began to release a few sprinkles. The air filled with the smell of living earth; wet soil, pine and grass. The rain grew progressively heavier, little to their attention and it misted their hair in fine, warm, droplets. 

Dipper held his hands up to Bill's chest to push him off for a second. He needed a minute to get his breath back again. He glanced up through his limp, soggy fringe at Bill whose hair somehow managed to look perfectly untouched besides the rain resting on it - almost like it was waterproof? 

With his senses on edge like this, Dipper could hear the wind in the leaves, rustling lazily around them. A calming, melodious sound. Though it wasn't enough to distract him from the hunger coiled tight inside. I bet you're enjoying this, he thought, challenging Bill with his narrowed eyes. 

Bill held Dipper's face, using his thumb to stroke his soft, heated cheek and Dipper nuzzled into his touch with a soft plaintive moan that even managed to excite the demon. Without holding back now, Bill directed Dipper's attention to the playful nibble he was giving on his neck while his hand descended to Dipper's zipper. He pulled it down and undid the button, revealing his plain black boxers. While they were plain, Bill thought, they looked damn good on him.   
"I think these would look better off, don't you?" he hummed in Dipper's ear. Dipper tensed dramatically and his heart rate accelerated. Bill wasn't well educated in the workings of the human body but even that was a scary pace. "Alright, calm down, I won't undress you." Dipper visibly relaxed beneath him. "But I am still going to toy with you."

"W-wait, Bill, hang o-"  
Bill brushed aside the hair in Dipper's eyes. It was a simple gesture to see the excited fear in them, but he was surprised to see the fresh blush that burned furiously across his face as a result. He had to suppress the sudden laugh that attempted to escape.   
"What an embarrassing face you're making," Bill teased.   
Dipper nudged him roughly in the shoulder. "Shut up!"  
"Hey now don't shout," he said placing a finger to Dipper's lip, "someone could be close by."  
Dipper simply huffed.

Bill's hand tugged at the hem of Dipper's underwear, causing his heart to flutter with a vague terror. It was closely followed by a hazy dizziness that made Dipper wonder if it was genuinely going to cause him to pass out. 

Bill's hand disappeared beneath the fabric, triggering a satisfied whimper out of Dipper. Dipper threw his arms around Bill and dug his nails into his back, groaning longingly. Bill leant in close, observing the bite mark he left on Dipper's neck and licked it, running his tongue over the slight indentations left by his teeth. "Again," Dipper whispered. Bill hesitated for a moment, then understood. Dipper actually liked to be bitten. Bill nuzzled into his neck and once more sunk his teeth into his skin, deeper this time. Dipper hissed, quivering, but he took it. And he liked it. 

"Dipper!" a voice screamed some distance away. A couple of startled crows took off above the trees and Bill picked up on advancing footsteps - someone was running towards them.   
"Oh my God, that's probably Mabel, she's awake! You have to get out of here."  
Bill removed himself from Dipper and stood up, brushing himself off. "I didn't intend for any of this to happen, so my timing was a little off. But you're right. I can't let her see me."  
"Go! Hurry!" Dipper ushered as he zipped up his jeans.   
Dipper froze as he felt their mental link activate. Bill kept his back to him as he said, (I'm starting to think this is more about shame than your family finding out an enemy has returned.) Bill vanished right after. Dipper looked down at his wrist that burned with a dull pain. It was a lot better than when they first started using it. It used to cause such agony before. He hoped one day it wouldn't hurt at all. 

"Dipper where are you!?" Mabel charged through the bushes and stumbled into the opening where Dipper was standing against the tree. He knew his face was still flushed and hoped the darkness would work in his favor. "What happened? Stan and I just work up, but we don't remember going to sleep. I don't know why I would when there was smores to be had."  
"Yeah that is pretty strange. Although I got what I was looking for." Dipper reached into his pocket and rummaged around for anything to show her and pulled out his house key.   
"That managed to get all the way out here?"  
"I...had to wrestle a squirrel for it."   
Mabel slapped him playfully on the arm and took a few backwards steps. "Well let's hurry up and make some s'mores before it gets late, I don't want to go to bed with a tummy ache."

Mabel jumped back through the bushes and he could hear her shouting after Stan. Dipper placed a hand over his chest, his heart still hammering violently against it. The last twenty minutes felt like an intense surreal dream. Knowing Bill that was likely a possibility but no, he knew it was for real this time. It was far too real. 

Dipper tilted his head back and gazed up at the shimmering stars. He'd never felt further away from them now he had been up there among them. It really was a breathtaking view. It was going to stay with him for a very long time, he just had that feeling. As he continued to stare up at them, he wondered, how far would they have gone if Mabel didn't come?


	11. Trust Me Bill, T.L.C

Part 11: Trust me Bill, T.L.C

 

The following morning, Dipper sat brooding at the dining table, stabbing his scrambled eggs while reading the local newspaper. He woke up thinking he had just another weird Bill dream until he realised last night had really happened. The kiss, the bites, the...uncharacteristically gentle touches. What had gotten into Bill let alone himself?

Dipper was surprised about the lack of pain he was in - he took Bill for the rough type. Tight grips, forceful kisses and claw marks enough to break the skin, drawing small beads of blood. Maybe he still is, he thought. Perhaps Bill was just holding back. He couldn't think of any reason why though. 

Dipper sighed and twirled his fork lazily around the plate. Food didn't appeal to him right now. He wasn't sure if he could tell Mabel every detail - she wasn't fully on board with their 'relationship' but he knew he should say something. Mabel was good at listening, or at least she was when she wasn't preoccupied with crafts or pampering Waddles. 

There was a small tap on the sink window behind Dipper, like a bird peck that broke him out his trail of thought, but he ignored it and continued to play with his eggs. The taps then became rapid and persistent, and out of irritation Dipper whirled round in his chair to scare the bird off, except instead of a raven or pigeon, it was Bill standing there with a wide grin on his face. He pressed his nose against the window and waved. Waving as if they were best friends about to go hang out together. As if. 

Dipper was smart enough to know that responding to Bill would only encourage him. He picked up his plate full of prodded, but otherwise untouched eggs and brought it to the sink. As he scraped the contents into the bin, Bill fogged up the glass above the sink and wrote 'Come outside! I want you to run some errands for me.' 

Ignore, ignore, ignore, Dipper repeated over and over in his head. He turned the tap on to rinse, however no water came out. Dipper narrowed his eyes and glared up at Bill. The demon gave a burlesque shrug while showing off his flawless white teeth. It must be nice to be the perfect human without the burdens of actually being one, Dipper thought. His own teeth weren't a trainwreck, although he always wanted them a little straighter. 

(You don't want to keep me waiting Pine Tree.) Dipper dropped the plate in the sink with a loud clatter and clutched at the burning mark on his wrist. It had been finally starting to wear off so there was no way it burned this painfully because of the contract link. Bill was adding in some of his own effort. His personality was far too twisted.   
(Get out of my head. I'm not in the mood to deal with you.)  
He didn't need to look at Bill to know he was smirking. (Get out of your head? Come now, we're not strangers. I mean my tongue was-)  
(Bill! Cut it out!"   
(Tsch. You are such a child sometimes.)  
Dipper dug the heels of his hands into his dreary eyes. (Seriously Bill. I'm having a bad day.)   
(Fine.)

At that moment the water sprang out in a wild spray from the tap nozzle, splashing everywhere and drenching the front of Dipper's clothes and hair. In a panic, Dipper lurched forward and quickly turned the tap off, although he was already soaked all down his front and water dripped onto his cheeks from the ends of his fringe. He wiped his face with his arm and didn't even bother to shoot Bill a look this time. He turned on his heel and marched out of the kitchen in a huff. He would clean up the mess later. 

"Even after what happened, he's still being stubborn," Bill muttered to himself. He turned and made his way round the side of the shack and tried the back porch door. It was locked. Of course. Not that it was an issue. With a flick of his wrist, the lock easily popped off and dropped to the floor. If the kid wasn't going to come outside, he would just have to go inside. 

Bill opened the door and stepped inside. The first thing he sensed was the empty presence of Shooting Star and the old man. He guessed they were out shopping. Living must be expensive and burdensome, he thought - how exhausting. 

Footsteps sounded right above him. Pine tree was climbing the stairs to his bedroom. Bill disappeared from the kitchen and reappeared in the attic, floating close to the ceiling. He watched as Dipper tiredly kicked off his sneakers at the door and flopped on the bed, sighing into his pillow. 

Bill could, and wanted to open the link to hear what thoughts were buzzing around in the Kid's head, but he was still experiencing pain when that happened so that had to take a back seat for now. Instead he'd have to do it the old fashioned way. 

"Just so you know, locked doors don't keep me out," Bill told him. He lowered himself to the bedside as Dipper lifted his head, staring daggers at Bill with shadows under his eyes.   
"Please go away," he groaned. " Haven't I seen your ghastly face enough today?"  
Bill jumped back, attempting to look offended. If it had been around anyone else they might've believed it. "I'll have you know I created my physique to the standards your species finds attractive."  
Dipper raised an eyebrow. "You claim to know lots of things and yet you have no idea how human attraction works."  
"Well, what do you think then?" He asked.   
"About what?"  
Bill gestured at himself. "About this. My body, my face. Do you think it looks attractive?"   
Dipper sat up on the bed, glancing down at his awkwardly fumbling hands as though he forgot what to do with them. A teasing, scarlet blush spread across his cheeks as he thought about what he'd say. Not that he ever would say it out loud, Bill thought, but I'll make him.   
"I may have an eternity to wait but you don't and honestly I'd get bored long before then, so tick, tock Kid. It's rude to keep a person waiting once they've asked you a question."

The front door downstairs slammed as Mabel and Stan returned from their shop. Dipper jumped off the bed and rushed past Bill to the stairs. "They'll have bought a lot of stuff so I should go help pack away the groceries!" he added hastily. Dipper disappeared through the doorway, leaving Bill on his own in the bedroom. The demon sighed heavily and folded his arms, tapping the floor incessantly with his foot.   
"That Kid is annoyingly stubborn..."   
Bill decided he would have to catch Shooting Star when she was alone for a good, private chat. 

\---------------

Mabel sat cross legged on the bedroom floor, unrolling her art supplies wrap chocked full of glitter glue, gel pens and scented erasers. Dipper and Stan were occupied downstairs with their favorite TV documentary, 'Naturally Supernatural.' A couple of times Gravity Falls had been featured, but no matter what they documented no one took it seriously. That is, except those who genuinely knew what was real and what was bogus.   
"Such dorks," Mabel giggled to herself. 

Hovering right above Mabel, Bill lurked near the ceiling beams watching her intently. She took out her iPod and walked over to her side of the room to plug it into some speakers. Oh, goodness no, Bill dreaded. Not sickly bubblegum pop and boy band hell. "Hold on a sec there Shooting Star!"   
Mabel shrieked and dropped her iPod. It bounced once and skittered across the floor under the bed out of sight.   
"Let's hope you still have warranty for that," Bill joked.   
"If I don't you're paying for it!"  
Bill scoffed. "Oh yeah? With what money?"   
"Well, just-"  
Bill raised his hand to silence her. He dropped to his feet and stood by her side, throwing his arm around her shoulders. "That's not important right now. I'm here because I need to ask you for a big favour."  
Mabel didn't trust that mischievous grin. "Oh no, I'm not making a deal with you or anything. I know where those trainwrecks end up." She was still disappointed in Dipper for acting so carelessly without consulting her, now bound to a demon because of it, but she wasn't going to allow Bill to do anymore damage. "Can you leave Dipper alone even if just for today? He's finally starting to relax and be himself."   
"You've got it all wrong Shooting Star, I actually want to help make him more...comfortable. Help me to help him. Understand?"  
Mabel raised a questioning eyebrow. That was the last thing she expected him to say. "What exactly does that mean?"  
Bill removed his arm from her and began pacing the room, exuberantly articulating his point through hand gestures. "If there's anyone on this planet that knows Pine Tree better than they know themselves, it's you Shooting Star. I figured you could toss me a tidbit or two about what he likes. What kinds of things wind him down."  
Realizing she wasn't going to get any crafts done today she sat back down on the floor and packed up her things. "I want to believe you're doing this to make Dipper happy, but my common sense tells me otherwise."  
Bill's shoulders sagged. "Nothing gets past you," he smiled tiredly. Mabel had started noticing these little quirks of Bill's. Though he didn't grow tired, he would still express himself as if he were. "I suppose I'm not doing it out of kindness or because I give a damn about his feelings. The kid is bound to me by a contract but he's really slacking with the work I assign him. I can't be aggressive, that only tires him out and then there's no point telling in him to do anything while half asleep. That went a bit pear shaped last time..."

Bill thought back to about two weeks ago when he gave Dipper a real piece of his mind for disobeying his orders. Just a lot of yelling and constant nightmares, even during his daydreams were supposed to the trick. However, that all backfired when he fell asleep walking across a log 'bridge' in the forest. Idiot nearly fell to his death. A dead servant wasn't of any use, let alone an exhausted one. 

Mabel jumped to her feet, eyes sparkling in wild excitement as a great idea struck her and took Bill's hands in her own. His eyes widened at the contact since he was a lot more used to Dipper keeping his embittered distance. "Oh you silly! It sounds like Dipper just needs a good dose of TLC!"   
Bill's face went slack. "T...wait, what?"  
"TLC!" she repeated. "Tender loving care."  
Bill remained silent, the meaning of her suggestion not quite sinking in. "What that means," she went on, "is that you should do a bunch of nice little things to lift his spirits. Normally I'd cuddle with him and watch movies or make him a sweater or some coffee. You know, silly things that he'd find dorky but caring. It all makes him smile in the end."   
Bill recoiled from her grasp and waved his hands dismissively. "No way! I'm not turning into his babysitter! My job isn't to pamper him!"   
Mabel folded her arms and gave the demon a stern look. Even she could make him feel uncomfortable with a burning glare like that. Bill sighed and raked a hand back through his fringe.   
"Is this literally the only way he'll quit being so mopey?"   
"Yes."  
"You're just saying that to get me to do it."  
"Trust me Bill, T.L.C," she said tapping his chest with each enunciated letter.   
"Good grief."


End file.
